04.11.2026 11:05
In Florida, which was once considered among the battleground states in the U.S., Republican candidate Byron Donalds won the gubernatorial election. According to AP’s projection, Donalds defeated his Democratic rival David Jolly and became the state’s first Black governor. Donalds also went down in the records as the first Black Republican elected governor in U.S. history. With the victory of Trump-backed Donalds, Republicans maintained their roughly 30-year governorship dominance in Florida.
In the shadow of the Democrats’ victory in Congress in the November 3 midterm elections in the U.S., a historic result for Republicans came from Florida. According to unofficial results, U.S. Representative Byron Donalds became the state’s new governor.
RAZOR-THIN VICTORY
According to data cited by Florida local media from AP, with about 99 percent of votes counted, Donalds received 50.1 percent and Jolly 48.6 percent. It was reported that Donalds left his rival behind by about 100,000 votes. The race was much more competitive than expected.
TWO SEPARATE FIRSTS
Donalds, 48, became the first Black person to win a statewide election in Florida. Donalds also earned the title of the first Black Republican elected governor in U.S. history. Donalds will replace outgoing Republican Governor Ron DeSantis.
“HEAR IT FROM FLORIDA, WE ARE STILL RED”
Donalds, who delivered his victory speech in South Florida, thanked his supporters and also expressed gratitude to President Donald Trump. Donalds said, “I want you to hear it from Florida, we are still red.” The color red symbolizes the Republican Party in the U.S.
TRUMP ENDORSED, DESANTIS JOINED LATER
Trump had endorsed Donalds before he launched his campaign. Donalds became the nominee by winning the August 18 Republican primary with 11 candidates. Governor DeSantis, who stayed neutral in the primary, later joined the campaign for Donalds. Donalds’s running mate for lieutenant governor was former state senator Bryan Avila.
WON AGAINST RIVAL WHO CHANGED PARTIES
Democratic candidate David Jolly was a former Republican congressman and switched parties to run a centrist campaign. Jolly’s running mate for lieutenant governor was Gwen Graham, daughter of former Florida Governor and Senator Bob Graham. In his campaign, Jolly focused on cost-of-living issues such as housing, inflation, gas prices, and the increase in AI data centers. Criticizing his opponent for receiving donations from the data center industry, Jolly described Donalds as “data center Donalds.”
CONTROVERSIAL AD IN CAMPAIGN
In the final weeks of the campaign, an ad released by Jolly was accused by critics of feeding the “angry Black man” stereotype. Jolly defended the ad and claimed that Donalds did not support the Black community.
REPUBLICAN ADVANTAGE CONTINUED
Republicans have an advantage of about 1.5 million registered voters in Florida. Donalds also had a clear superiority over his rival in campaign donations. According to NPR, Donalds achieved this victory at a time when dissatisfaction with Trump was rising nationwide due to gas prices and the Iran war.
TWO HISTORIC RESULTS ON THE SAME NIGHT
On election night, two historic results occurred in gubernatorial races in the U.S. In Georgia, Democratic candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms became the first Black woman governor in the U.S., while in Florida Republican Byron Donalds became the state’s first Black governor and the country’s first Black Republican governor.
WHO IS BYRON DONALDS?
Byron Lowell Donalds was born on October 28, 1978, in New York. He graduated from Florida State University. Donalds was first elected to the Florida House of Representatives, then represented Florida’s 19th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives. Donalds, regarded as one of Trump’s close allies, became the Republican Party’s gubernatorial nominee in August 2026.