David JollyDavid Jolly

Focuses on lowering housing and insurance costs, increasing public-school funding and teacher pay, and expanding Medicaid. He also supports reproductive rights, gun-safety measures, clean energy, coastal protection, and stronger government ethics and transparency

Florida may be red, but races don’t flip if people don’t vote. His priorities align with mine, and this one is worth showing up for. Former Republican, now Democrat. I respect the willingness to evolve when the party no longer reflects your values.

David Jolly is a former Member of Congress, attorney, and nationally recognized television analyst who launched his bid for Governor in June of 2025. The son of a pastor and father of two, Jolly has pledged he won’t engage in negative campaigning and has argued Florida voters are “just looking for some goodness in our politics.”

➡️ Jolly’s running mate, former Rep. Gwen Graham (and daughter of the late senator and Gov. Bob Graham).

➡️ He is a former Republican, but don’t necessarily let that sway you — he has been a solid critic of the Trump administration, even as far back as December 2015, when he took to the floor of the U.S. House to call for him to drop his presidential bid after Trump proposed that Muslim immigrants and tourists should temporarily be barred from entering the country. He’s been an independent since 2018, citing differences with Trump, and registered as a Democrat in 2025.

Jolly defended his party switch by saying, “I don’t think the problem in politics are people who change. I think the problem in politics are people who won’t change.”

🎥 One of the first appearances I saw from Jolly was back in July 2025, when he appeared on the Chuck Toddcast to reflect on pivotal moments in Florida that led to his decision to run as a Democrat vs. Independent, including:

• The Pulse nightclub shooting that served as a reckoning for his views on gun ownership

• His departure from the NRA after rejecting their "quid pro quo" offer for an A rating

• Florida's public school system has been gutted due to voucher program

• The entire episode is absolutely worth a listen.

Friends throughout the state have heard him speak and met with him in this past year, and feel confident he would be a phenomenal leader from Florida and hasn’t switched parties just to

His Priorities are:

• Solving Florida’s affordability and insurance crisis

• Saving our Schools

• Campaign Finance and Ethics Reform

• Strengthening Florida’s Economy

• Restoring Reproductive Freedoms

• Investing in Climate Resiliency, Clean Water, Clean Energy, and the Ocean Economy

• Restoring Services for Veterans

• Giving Florida’s Families Access to Florida’s Universities

• Reducing Gun Violence

• Fighting Crime, Not Communities

• Delivering Affordable Healthcare to Floridians

• Treating Everyone with Kindness, Dignity, and Respect

Everything you need to know about the Jolly/Graham campaign here.

David Jolly must be elected as gov if we want Florida to even have an environment in the next decade. If Byron Donalds wins it will extremely difficult to stop bad enviro bills. Donalds is funded by large land developers and data center developers, and will absolutely pave over the state with no hesitation. With Jolly, we would have an AMAZING chance to get good bills passed and block the bad bills. He has also said he will appoint new FWC commissioners, and more.

Why I'm voting for David Jolly

He's currently the only Democratic option, but beyond that, I respect that when his values — especially around Trump — no longer matched the Republican Party, he left it, moving first to independent, then Democrat. That takes more courage than just staying loyal to a party. As a mother and educator, his focus on lowering housing costs, funding public schools, and supporting gun safety matters to me for my child's future.

My hesitation

His past as a Washington lobbyist, particularly accusations he lobbied for offshore oil drilling, concerns me as someone who cares about protecting the environment for my child. He's denied it, but a fact-checker rated his denial "Mostly False" — so it's a real mark against him I'm weighing.

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He wants to hold voucher accepting private schools to the same standards as public schools and eliminate for-profit charters. Wants to increase investments in our public schools. This is the one we need!