With Rep. Byron Donalds having already raised over $20 million and is continuing to pile up key political campaign endorsements since announcing his 2026 gubernatorial run, has the fat lady begun to sing for anyone thinking about entering the Republican gubernatorial primary sweepstakes?
Politicos standing around just about every single political water cooler from Tallahassee to Washington, D.C. believe that endorsements won't win you an election, but it sure can help build confidence, momentum, and raise hard campaign dollars.
President Donald Trump's endorsement of Rep. Donalds has helped him score many endorsements and raise the aforementioned $20 million.
The proof is in the pudding, and it looks like Floridians could be in the mood for some chocolate flavoring.
Does Donalds have the Republican gubernatorial nomination all wrapped up?
Not so fast.
After appointing him lieutenant governor, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is actively working the phones and pressing his donors to back Lt. Gov. Jay Collins' expected, maybe even imminent, gubernatorial campaign.
Cash is always king when it comes to political campaigns, so Lt. Gov. Collins has his work really cut out for him, if and when he announces his gubernatorial run.
With political campaign donors and lobbyists already feeling pressure from DeSantis, there is a pretty good chance that Collins will announce in the coming weeks.
Endorsements
Donalds has already announced the support of Reps Anna Paulina Luna, Mike Haridopolos, Cory Mills, Brian Mast, and Senator Rick Scott, among others.
If Collins, who is staunch supporter of Gov. DeSantis, jumps in to the race against Donalds, he may find it very hard to garner state and federal level endorsements because of his support for DeSantis.
The endorsement of President Trump is not only the gold standard of all political endorsement, it is also the kiss of death for anyone or campaign that finds itself running against the America First Agenda.
When DeSantis made the ill-advised move to challenge Trump in the 2024 Republican presidential primary election, he had the luxury of having a bully pulpit that empowered him to squeeze Tallahassee lobbyists and lawmakers for campaign cash and endorsements.
Remember, DeSantis was able to garner the support of the 99 of the 112 Republican lawmakers in the Florida Legislature at the time even though there was a small handful of defectors within the Republican ranks, including, State Senators Ana Maria Rodriguez, Erin Grall, Ed Hooper, Tim Wright and Joe Gruters, who all endorsed Trump over DeSantis.
Speaking of Sen. Gruters, the longtime Trump loyalist and Donalds-endorsee, was just elected to lead the national Republican National Committee (RNC).
Collins stayed true to the man who helped him win his State Senate race, joining then-Senator Blaise Ingoglia in endorsing DeSantis over Trump.
Thus far, Donalds has scored the endorsements of State Representatives Meg Weinberger, Berny Jacques, Jenna Persons-Mulicka, and Toby Overdord, with several high profile state lawmakers telling The Floridian that their support for Donalds would be made public in the coming weeks, months.
"My endorsement of Byron Donalds, alongside President Trump’s, is about bringing Republicans together. He has the leadership to unite us and the vision to win in 2026," said Rep. Juan Porras in a statement to The Floridian. "Republicans should unite behind him instead of further dividing our party for selfish political gain."
But while most state lawmakers have not endorsed in the race, the recent illegal immigration stand off between the Florida House of Representativws and the DeSantis administration, could be preview on how they will break in a Donalds v. Collins primary election.
The anti-DeSantis rebellion in the Republican-led state legislature is ongoing and Collins, who is very likeable in both chambers, could turn out to be collateral damage from DeSantis' alleged strong-arming of lawmakers.
Speaker Daniel Perez and all but one lawmaker, Rep. Mike Caruso, stood up to DeSantis' immigration plan during the 2025 legislative session, so expect the overwhelming majority of state lawmakers to back Donalds.
Collins checks off all the boxes for being a great governor and would take the fight to Donalds (Team Trump), but MAGA Republicans and Independents could play a decisive role early in the gubernatorial primary, if Collins gets in the race.
Also, could the Gruters-controlled RNC shut off any political and financial support for Collins?
Another point to make is that regardless of all the wins DeSantis has brought to Florida and how popular he may be, Florida is Trump country.
