U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds officially announced that he will run for Florida Governor.

“I’m here to announce my candidacy to be the next Governor of the great state of Florida,” Donalds said in a prime time interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity.

“I think now is the time to now take the mantle and lead our state into the future.”

The long-expected move came days after the Naples Republican received a speculative endorsement from President Donald Trump.

Donalds just won a third term in Congress representing Florida’s 19th Congressional District over Democrat Kari Lerner. He first won his seat following a competitive Republican Primary in 2020, then went on to easily defeat Democrat Cindy Banyai in the heavily Republican district. Before his election to the U.S. House, Donalds served two terms in the Florida House.

He spent more time in 2024 campaigning for Trump across the country, becoming one of the Republican President’s most prominent surrogates. He was briefly under consideration as Trump’s running mate, a role that ultimately went to Ohio Republican JD Vance.

But the close relationship to the President made for little suspense when Trump publicly encouraged Donalds to run in a Truth Social post.

“Byron Donalds would be a truly Great and Powerful Governor for Florida and, should he decide to run, will have my Complete and Total Endorsement,” Trump posted. “RUN, BYRON, RUN!”

Several other prominent Republicans could still run for the GOP nomination, most notably First Lady Casey DeSantis, whose favorability ratings exceeded Donalds’ in a recent University of North Florida poll. Other potential candidates include Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson and former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, now a One America News host. Republicans Matt Taylor and Robert William have already filed.

Hannity asked Donalds his thoughts on potential competitors, especially Casey DeSantis.

Donalds said while he thought Gov. Ron DeSantis has done a good job over the last six years leading the state, including in protecting the environment, it was time for a change. He recalled Sen. Rick Scott’s financial focus during eight years as Governor, and said it was time once again for someone with a business background to lead Florida government.

“We have an insurance problem in our state. You know my career in banking insurance and in financial services,” Donalds said. “I want to make sure that we solve this problem for the people of Florida, and it’s going to mean bringing every stakeholder to the table, because the people of Florida is what’s going to matter. We got to solve it. We’ve got to stabilize those costs.

“I want to turn Florida into the financial hub of the world. Digital assets has made a home in South Florida. I want to make sure that we become the most business friendly state in our country, for businesses to incorporate in our state, but then also for the state to take the lead on crypto currency and digital assets.”

Many have suggested Donalds will easily beat any opponents based on Trump’s endorsement alone.

“It sends an undeniable message that Trump has a long memory and anybody who dares challenge his endorsed candidates in Florida will find themselves caught in his crosshairs,” said state Sen. Joe Gruters, a Sarasota Republican running for Chief Financial Officer with Trump’s support.

And consultants in Southwest Florida said Donalds long demonstrated tremendous political acumen.

“The only person that is going to stop Byron Donalds from being the next Governor of Florida is Jesus Christ if he drops him dead before Election Day,” said Naples-based consultant Matt Hurley of Victory Insights. “The Donalds ERA in Florida politics has officially begun. The next decade is going to be an amazing thing to watch.”

Fort Myers-based consultant Terry Miller of TM Consulting said the mechanics have clearly been in the works for some time to establish Donalds as a front-runner.

“It’s not any surprise Trump endorsed Byron,” Miller said. “(Donalds) has been telegraphing for some time he will be running for this seat and his relationship with the President is well known — from being a public surrogate in the campaign to just last week going to the Daytona 500 with him. That relationship is strong. So it’s an expected move but the move Byron needs to establish himself as the front-runner and most likely to box anyone else out.”

Post Views: 0

Sarasota Republican Sen. Joe Gruters has filed a new measure (SB 1140) that would create a pilot program designed to manage and monitor individuals charged with, or convicted of, specific offenses related to substance abuse.

The bill would establish the Substance Abuse Accountability Pilot Program in Hillsborough County, which would run from Oct. 1, 2025, through to Sept. 30, 2027.

For individuals charged or convicted of a felony or first-degree misdemeanor who are on probation, community control or any other community sanction — including supervised pretrial release with conditions to abstain from alcohol or controlled substances — the court may identify and designate a subset eligible for the program.

Individuals would then be randomly assigned to participate in the program, which would be capped at 150 offenders participating at any one time.

The program would be designed, implemented and managed by the county Sheriff, who would consult with judicial and law enforcement officials and the Department of Corrections. The Sheriff would also be able to contract with a third party to assist with the program’s design and implementation.

For the program to be fully launched, the Sheriff would be required to oversee the supervision of all participants during their time in the program. Upon discharge, participants will continue to be managed according to current laws for any remaining term of supervision.

Participants would be required to attend an in-person judicial hearing where a Judge would explain the program’s conditions and sanctions for noncompliance. Participants who have been ordered to abstain from alcohol consumption, would be tested twice per day by mobile breath alcohol testing — this would be completed in person at the Sheriff’s Office approximately 12 hours apart.

The bill does, however, allow for a court to determine that in-person testing would be unreasonably burdensome on the participant, and may order the participant to wear a continuous monitoring device capable of detecting alcohol instead.

Participants who have been ordered to abstain from controlled substances would be subject to random testing, which would happen at least every seven days with no fewer than 60 hours between tests. Testing would be completed at a county sheriff’s office or an alternate designated by the sheriff’s office.

Missed tests, failed tests, and alerts by a continuous monitoring device of a positive test result, would be probable cause to assume the participant violated the program. Violations could lead to arrest and being held in a county jail until the participant can appear before a Judge, which would be required to happen within 24 hours.

If a Judge finds that a participant has violated the program, they would then be held in jail for a period of 24 hours but would be credited the hours that passed between the participant’s arrest and appearance before the court.

For those who do not see a Judge within 24 hours of being arrested, the court would be required to release the participant at the earliest opportunity. The bill notes the offender’s release does not end their participation in the program.

Courts would further be able to reduce a participant’s frequency of testing for alcohol consumption to once per day for those participants who demonstrate they have had zero program violations for 60 consecutive days. Courts could further reduce testing for controlled substance abuse participants to once per week if they have had zero violations over a period of six months.

For those who violate the program’s conditions more than five times, a court may remove the participant from the program and sentence the offender according to the law. Offenders would be required to pay all fees associated with their participation, unless a court finds cause to reduce the fees.

The Attorney General would be tasked with evaluating the program’s effectiveness by June 30, 2028, and would be required to submit a report on the program’s results and evaluations to the Governor and the Legislature by Nov. 30, 2028.

The program would be allocated $2.5 million in Fiscal Year 2025-26 from the Opioid Settlement Trust Fund, while program provisions would be repealed Nov. 30, 2028. If passed, the bill would come into effect July 1.

Post Views: 0