US Midterms 2026
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David Jolly, a lawyer who represented Florida in the U.S. House as a Republican from 2014 to 2017, is the Democratic nominee for Florida governor in 2026.
Live TruthIndex™ and prediction market consensus for races contested by David Jolly.
Recent media coverage for David Jolly.
The Clintons are back on the midterm campaign circuit: with Bill Clinton heading to Florida to stump for Democratic gubernatorial nominee David Jolly and Hillary Clinton taking to the podcast microphone as the party…
WalzCandidates: Byron Donalds (R) at 46%, David Jolly (D) at 44%; about 10% undecided.
DonaldsDavid Jolly, a Democratic candidate for Florida governor, is targeting undecided Black voters as a key swing factor in the race.
Amendment 3: Support at about 50%, with undecided voters shaping its fate.
A Stetson University poll (Oct. 1–9) indicates Byron Donalds leads the Florida governor’s race. Donalds has 52% support vs.
DonaldsDavid Jolly, the Florida Democratic gubernatorial nominee, is pursuing a moderate, crossover-appeal campaign that positions him as a former Republican who can appeal to swing voters.
No story this week names this candidate.
David Wilson Jolly was born on October 31, 1972, in Dunedin, Florida, to Judith Jolly and Lawson Jolly, a Baptist pastor, and was raised in Dade City. He graduated from Emory University with a B.A. in 1994 and received his J.D. from the George Mason University School of Law in 2001.
From 1995 to 2006 he held a series of posts on the staff of Republican Representative Bill Young, serving as Young's general counsel from 2002. He then lobbied for the Washington firm Van Scoyoc Associates from 2007 and in 2011 set up Three Bridges Advisors, a lobbying business of his own.
Seeking the vacant seat in Florida's 13th congressional district, Jolly took a 45% plurality in the January 14, 2014 Republican primary and then won the March 11 special election against Democrat Alex Sink with 48.4%. He won a full term in November 2014 with 75% against Libertarian Lucas Overby.
In July 2015 he announced a run for the Senate seat held by Marco Rubio, then withdrew in June 2016 after Rubio decided to seek reelection, and returned to the House race. In the 2016 general election, held under a redrawn map, he lost to Charlie Crist by 51.9% to 48.1%.
His committee work in Congress was on Appropriations.
After leaving Congress in 2017, Jolly appeared as a political commentator on CNN and MSNBC, where he criticized President Donald Trump. In July 2018 he joined Shumaker Advisors Florida in Tampa as a principal and executive vice president. He left the Republican Party in 2018 and registered as a Democrat in April 2025.
Jolly announced his campaign for governor of Florida in June 2025, choosing as his running mate Gwen Graham, a former Democratic member of Congress from Florida's 2nd district. Republican Governor Ron DeSantis is barred from a third consecutive term, leaving the office open.
Jolly secured the Democratic nomination in the August 18, 2026 primary and faces Republican Byron Donalds in the November 3 general election. His platform includes a ten-year plan for public education with a 30% increase in teacher pay and legislation to codify abortion rights.
