Representative Byron Donalds, a Republican, won the Florida governor’s race on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, maintaining his party’s nearly three-decade hold on the seat.
Mr. Donalds, of Naples, will become Florida’s first Black governor.
He defeated David Jolly, a former Republican congressman turned Democrat, who gave Mr. Donalds a real race even though Mr. Donalds far out-raised and outspent him. Republicans have held the Florida governor’s office since 1999, and now hold all statewide offices and supermajorities in the Legislature.
With frequent appearances on Fox News in recent years, Mr. Donalds became known as a staunch supporter of President Trump, who endorsed him to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis. Mr. Donalds, 48, was first elected to Congress in 2020, and endorsed Mr. Trump over Mr. DeSantis in the 2024 presidential primary.
But with voters souring on Mr. Trump, the race against Mr. Jolly became surprisingly competitive, polling showed.
Mr. Donalds, who was raised in Brooklyn and moved to Florida for college, pitched voters on keeping the state a conservative bastion after Mr. DeSantis leaves office because of term limits. In recent years, Mr. DeSantis pushed divisive measures to counter what he described as “woke” policies in public schools, universities, libraries and local governments. Through it all, he remained popular in the state.
Mr. Donalds has vowed to make Florida more affordable by lowering property taxes and insurance costs, streamlining government agencies and spurring business innovation. He has also championed using taxpayer funds to expand school choice alongside his wife, Erika Donalds, who runs a private education company.
Mr. Donalds raised more than $170 million, more than six times as much as Mr. Jolly did. During the campaign, critics portrayed Mr. Donalds as beholden to big-money interest groups and companies that build or support data centers, which voters in both parties largely oppose.
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