David Jolly says he’s now raised more than $2 million for 2026 Gov run

David Jolly, a one-time Republican Congressman who switched parties during the first Trump presidency, says he has raised more than $2 million for his 2026 bid for Florida Governor.

The money raised went to his campaign and Florida 2026, the political committee supporting Jolly’s efforts.

Jolly says the money shows voters want a change.

“We are blessed by the support of small-dollar donors from across Florida and all 50 states, as well as major contributors who are investing in the change our campaign represents, backing us through next November. I’ve never been more optimistic about our opportunity to create change in 2026. The people know it, and the polls show it,” Jolly said.

Jolly’s fundraising is setting the pace for Democrats, in part because no other major candidate is running.

But it puts him behind the two major Republicans in the race.

Former House Speaker Paul Renner^[1] raised $3.7 million over just 35 days. And U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds^[2] has raised at least $31.5 million.

Though it’s early in the cycle still, Jolly has spent some of his money on polling, which bolsters his narrative.

An internal survey^[3] circulated by his campaign last month shows that head to head contests between Jolly and either of the two aforementioned Republicans are coin flips.

If the race is that close, it means Republicans are crossing over to vote for a Democrat, given the GOP has nearly 1.4 million more registered voters than the opposition party.

It also represents a deviation from 2022, when Gov. Ron DeSantis defeated another Republican convert to the Democrats, Charlie Crist, by nearly 20 percentage points.