Florida Governor Race Tightens to Within 6 Points

Florida voters cast ballots on Tuesday in a gubernatorial race that Newsweek reports has narrowed to a four to six percentage point gap. The contest pits Republican Byron Donalds against Democrat David Jolly.

The outcome will determine whether Florida returns to Democratic leadership for the first time since 1999. Kenneth Hood-Mackay remains the last Democrat to hold the office, a span of more than 25 years.

Byron Donalds, a U.S. representative from Southwest Florida, campaigns with the endorsement of Donald Trump. He previously served two terms in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 to 2020 before winning a seat in Congress in 2020. Donalds works on the House Financial Services and Oversight and Accountability committees.

David Jolly, a fifth-generation Floridian from Pinellas County, entered the race after switching parties. He served as a Republican U.S. representative from 2014 to 2017, succeeding Bill Young in Florida's 13th Congressional District. He spent seven years as an independent before joining the Democratic Party in 2025.

Polling places in most of the state operated from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday. Counties in the Panhandle, which observe Central Time, allowed voting until 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Preliminary results were scheduled to begin releasing at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time due to the state's two time zones. Voters in the Panhandle had an additional hour to cast their ballots compared to the rest of the state.