
Ex-GOP Congressman David Jolly Announces Run For Florida Governor, As A Democrat
HuffPost
Given the lack of Democrats with statewide name recognition, he could well cruise to the nomination unchallenged by a serious opponent.
The first major candidate to announce a run for the Democratic nomination for Florida governor is a former Republican member of Congress who could possibly roll through the primary without a serious challenge.
David Jolly, who served three years in the House representing a Tampa Bay district and is likely best known now as an MSNBC contributor, on Thursday announced his bid to become the first Democrat in Tallahassee’s governor’s mansion since Buddy MacKay held the job for three weeks finishing out the term of Lawton Chiles, who died in late 1998.
“Something is happening in Florida,” Jolly told HuffPost, describing the town-hall style meetings he has held around the state, including in solidly Republican areas, over the past several months. “We’ve got a shot in this governor’s race.”
MacKay, who had been Chiles’ lieutenant governor, lost to Republican Jeb Bush in November 1998, and a Republican has held Florida’s governorship ever since.
The closest Democrats have come to winning over that stretch was 2018, when Tallahassee mayor Andrew Gillum came within 32,000 votes of defeating then-congressman Ron DeSantis. DeSantis won reelection, however, by 19 points over Charlie Crist, another Republican-turned-Democrat.













