“RUN, BYRON, RUN!” Trump posted on social media in February.
Thus Donalds’ campaign began over a year before Election Day.
Donalds, a Republican, is polling at about a five-point lead over David Jolly, the most notable Democratic candidate, with about a third of voters still undecided, according to the polling firm Victory Insights. And the possibility of Casey DeSantis challenging him in a Republican primary is beginning to fade, according to lobbyists and consultants.
A Brooklyn native who came to the Sunshine State more than 20 years ago to study at Florida A&M University and Florida State University, Donalds has been involved in Florida politics for about a decade. The first race he won was a state House seat in 2016, representing a coastal district near Fort Myers, and he was reelected there in 2018. During that time, Donalds was known as a firm Trump supporter. He was elected to Congress in 2020 and has since been reelected twice.
While in D.C., he has aligned himself with the ultraconservative Tea Party caucus, voting hardline MAGA — though Gov. Ron DeSantis accused Donalds in 2023 of siding with then-Vice President Kamala Harris after Donalds criticized statewide education standards that had Florida students being taught that American slaves learned useful skills. Donalds, who is Black, called them “wrong” on social media and said they needed adjustment. Donalds later endorsed Trump over DeSantis during the 2024 presidential election cycle.
Only about half of Floridians recognize Donalds’ name — up from a third in February, before he announced his campaign. Who would he be as Florida’s governor? The Miami Herald sat down with him to find out.
What follows are exchanges from Donalds’ interview with the Herald, edited for brevity and clarity.
Q: You launched your campaign fairly early. How do you keep people interested in your candidacy over the next 14 months prior to the primary?
A: It’s really about continuing to add people to your coalition. (Our campaign’s) been fortunate to really be in just about every part of our state. We’re going to continue to travel the state. And wherever we go to, whether it’s CPAC Latino, business owners throughout our state, nonprofits, religious groups — people have been excited. I think that it’s just one day at a time. You keep working hard, and it all comes together.
Q: Did you time the launch of your campaign and Trump’s endorsement to get ahead of potential competitors, like Casey DeSantis?
A: No, that was not what happened. The president endorsed and then I was like, oh, all right, I guess we’re running for governor. I had been thinking about running, and you have a bunch of different timelines of when you announce. The president’s endorsement pretty much changed all that.
Q: Is the Democratic Party in Florida dead? Is your only concern during this campaign a Republican primary?
A: Yeah, they’re pretty much dead. But that doesn’t mean you ignore them and take your foot off the gas.
Q: What do Floridians want from their next governor? What is the issue or issues they most care about?
A: Right now, obviously, people are concerned about insurance. A lot of sticker shock around there. People want to talk about transportation — how am I getting around the state? How might we get some of the traffic off the roads?
But overall, as I travel the state, people are happy with Florida. They want it to continue, so their biggest thing is, are we going to keep moving on the same path? Florida is going to remain the free state of Florida. We’re going to keep people safe. We’re going to make sure kids are getting a quality education.
One of the things I focus on is helping children in our state become proficient in core subject matter. About 30 percent of our kids are proficient in math and reading. We need to raise that bar (to) 50 percent. If you’re proficient in core subjects, now you’re even more ready to take on the challenges of the world. We’re preparing the future of Florida.
Q: Are there any ways that your administration would be different than a DeSantis administration?
A: Look, when it comes to policy, the governor and I don’t really have disagreements. ... I think it’s more about careers. The governor was an attorney. I’m a man of finance. So I think it’s just a different way of going about your business, but in terms of policy outcomes and political stances, there’s not going to be much change.
Q: As a former state lawmaker, what are your thoughts on the struggle between DeSantis and the Legislature this past session?
A: Every session’s different. What most people don’t understand is that there are usually conflicts between the governor and the Legislature. It happens a lot more than people realize. It’s really just maintaining open lines of communication with House and Senate leadership and really trying to do the early work of trying to get on the same page, really understanding what everybody’s priorities and positions are. And just being professional and working through that on a step-by-step basis.
Q: If you were to be elected, you would be the first Black Republican governor in the modern history of the party. What do you think that signals for the party?
A: Our party is growing. People are far more diverse, but not just diversity for diversity’s sake. We are still a party built on ideals. Strong ideas of individual liberty, human freedom, economic growth, sound policy, safe streets and children being educated. Those are principles that whether you’re Black, whether you’re Cuban, whether you’re Puerto Rican or Dominican — you can agree with that. These are the philosophies that build families and maintain strong cultures.
That’s why I think you see more Black people coming to the Republican Party. They’re sick of the dogma and the terrible policies. And the broken promises ... (Democrats) never have real solutions. I think people are tired of it. What they’re looking at in Republicans is people who are no nonsense. You may agree with us, you may disagree with us, but you’re going to get a straight answer. ... At the end of the day, people respect that. That’s why you’re seeing more minorities choose the Republican Party.
Q: GOP members of Congress in Miami have called on the Trump administration to be more discerning as it seeks to deport immigrants in the country illegally. Do you agree with that position?
A: No, I think the way the president is moving, it’s going to continue. Let’s be very clear: We have to be consistent when it comes to dealing with immigration law. What we want is more legal immigration, people who come in the right way. What Joe Biden allowed was anarchy, and that anarchy is going to create chaos. It’s unfortunate this is what happens when you have terrible policy from the Democratic Party.
The first thing: You’ve got to secure the border. (Trump) has done that. When it comes to deportations, obviously starting with criminal and illegal aliens, and then other people in the country illegally — yes, a lot of people are going to have to go home because we took on more than 10 million people. Our budgets are overwhelmed in every city in America. ... We have to do the right thing, which is reset the table.
And then we can work on letting people come into the country legally, to be able to come and work in America, if that’s what they choose to do, or assimilate in America and become citizens.
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