Here’s who might run for Florida governor in 2026

[tector]

Sure it's from the commie Sun-Sentinel, but still helpful.

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2024/05/26 ... r-in-2026/

The 2024 elections are still months from being decided. But for some in Florida, 2026 is already here.

With Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis set to be termed out of office, the field of potential gubernatorial candidates is taking shape, with some of Florida’s most powerful figures jockeying for position.

The last time the governor’s race didn’t include an incumbent was 2018 when Rick Scott was reaching the end of his two terms. At this point in that cycle, few would have predicted the rise of then-U.S. Rep. DeSantis.

With so much time until voters cast ballots — and a presidential election coming in November of this year — most of those thought to be interested in the governor’s race are staying mum. No major party candidate has filed to run.

But here’s what the field could look like, listed in alphabetical order by party.


Republicans

U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds
Donalds’ name has been floated for governor, but he is also being talked about as a possible Donald Trump running mate. The 45-year-old Collier County Republican rose to prominence during the Tea Party wave of the early 2010s. In 2023, as Republicans struggled to elect a leader in Washington, Donalds earned a few votes from conservative colleagues to be the speaker of the House.

Donalds reportedly got a special shout-out from Trump at a Manhattan fundraiser. The former president asked Donalds then whether he was running for governor in 2026, according to Politico.

“That’s what I hear,” Donalds reportedly replied.

U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz
In part because he’s one of Trump’s most loyal foot soldiers, Gaetz likely has the name recognition to compete in a statewide race. When asked about a potential statewide run, Gaetz, 42, left the door open.

“President Trump keeps telling my wife she’d make a great First Lady of Florida. I keep telling him my only political focus is his re-election,” the Pensacola-area Republican wrote in an emailed statement. “Without that, we don’t have a country.”

Before November 2026 rolls around, the four-term U.S. representative will have to navigate an ethics investigation into his alleged relationship with a minor. Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing in that episode; in 2023, the Justice Department closed a criminal case into Gaetz without charging him.

Attorney General Ashley Moody
Moody, 49, who’s finishing her second term as attorney general, has proven that she can win a statewide election. The Republican has been a thorn in Biden’s side as attorney general, having sued the White House over numerous policies.

Perhaps her most notable moment in office was a display of loyalty to Trump. In December 2020, she endorsed a lawsuit hoping to overturn the result of the 2020 election that Trump lost. A lawyer in her office called that lawsuit “bats—t insane,” but Moody has defended the litigation, saying she would have liked the Supreme Court to weigh in on the suit. The court declined to hear the case.

Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis
If loyalty to Trump is the main criterion in a Republican primary, the state’s twice-elected chief financial officer is trying to stand out. In recent months, Patronis backed a bill in the Legislature that would have provided public funding for the former president’s legal defense.

He criticized Trump’s New York trial, calling it “stupid.” And he wrote to Trump inviting him to claim $54,000 of unclaimed money found in Trump’s name.

With two statewide victories under his belt, Patronis, 52, could well have a shot at the governor’s mansion.

Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson
Simpson, who became agriculture commissioner in 2023, has numerous conservative policy achievements he can point to in a Republican primary. He served as the president of the Florida Senate during the 2021 and 2022 legislative sessions.

However, he has had a rocky relationship with DeSantis at times, as evidenced by the governor’s moves to veto some of Simpson’s pet budget projects.

Simpson, 57, an egg farmer, is worth about $21 million, according to financial disclosure forms.

U.S. Rep. Michael Waltz
Waltz, 50, who represents a large district north of Orlando, is less well-known than Gaetz or Donalds, but he has been raising his national profile.

Like Gaetz, Waltz seems to have the approval of Trump. In a recent Axios story, Trump said of Waltz, a former Green Beret: “When I want to know about the military, I call him.”

In a March interview with WFTV, Waltz appeared to be mulling a 2026 run for governor.

“I joke a little bit that we’ve had two Navy governors, in Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis. Maybe it’s time for some Army boots up there,” Waltz said.



Democrats

State House minority leader Fentrice Driskell
Driskell, the Democratic leader in the state House, has seen her party badly outnumbered in Tallahassee. But from her post, she’s had a platform to speak out against Republican legislative priorities like abortion bans and expansions of school voucher programs.

The 45-year-old Harvard-educated attorney is considering a run in 2026, she said in a statement. But first, she wants to help her party win back a few House seats.

Nikki Fried, Florida Democratic Party chair
Fried ran for governor in 2022. Could she give it another shot in 2026?

“No time for that right now,” Fried wrote in a text message in response to a question about her 2026 plans.

Fried, 46, the state’s former agriculture commissioner, is the only Democrat to have won statewide in the past decade. But her first run for governor ended in a 24-point loss to Charlie Crist in the Democratic primary.

Democratic state Sen. Shevrin Jones
Jones, 40, a vocal Democratic state senator from the Miami area, is seen as a rising star in his party. However, he’s also untested on the statewide stage.

In a statement, Jones said he is focused on getting Democrats elected in 2024.

U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz
There’s trying to raise your national profile, and then there’s what Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, 43, has been doing for the last few months.

In March, Moskowitz showed up to a House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing on Hunter Biden’s business dealings wearing a Vladimir Putin mask.

Moskowitz has trolled some of the more progressive members of his own party, too. In April, when Moskowitz visited Columbia University, he compared the anti-Israel protests on that campus to the white nationalists who protested in Charlottesville in 2017.

Moskowitz, a first-term U.S. representative who served in DeSantis’ administration from 2019 until 2021, has signaled he is open to a 2026 run for governor. In an increasingly red state, Moskowitz seems to be attempting to appeal to the state’s more moderate voters.

Democratic state Sen. Jason Pizzo
Pizzo, a South Florida state senator, often speaks out against Republican priorities in the state Senate.

He’s also tried to show he’s a team player for his party. In 2022, when he didn’t have an opponent running against him, a political committee chaired by Pizzo donated nearly $700,000 to Democratic causes around the state.

In October, he told the outlet Florida Politics that he would run if Gaetz runs.Pizzo, 48, is worth more than $60 million, according to financial disclosure forms he’s filed with the state.

[George W]

Of those choices, only Moody interests me in the slightest. She's a local girl with deep Florida roots. My family have done business with hers since long before she or I were born. Her voice though.... sheez. It's almost as bad as Fried's.

[tector]

Of those choices, only Moody interests me in the slightest. She's a local girl with deep Florida roots. My family have done business with hers since long before she or I were born. Her voice though.... sheez. It's almost as bad as Fried's.

Yeah, the best I can say is that she seems harmless enough.

If Trump wins, it wouldn't surprise me if Pam Bondi popped backed up with his backing. He seemed to like her.

[Miami_JBT]

Wilton Simpson is the RPOF's choice along with Trump's. Simpson has tremendous political sway within the party and a very large campaign war chest. Also, he is one of the earlier backers of Trump and Trump as a quid-pro-quo endorsed him during the primary for Ag Commissioner. A race that no one really gets involved in.

[chester field]

A Simpson government would be the ultimate in Southern stereotype and characterization. Boss Hog runs Florida. I'd rather see Desantis' wife run.