President Donald Trump posted an image on Truth Social showing Representative Byron Donalds (R-FL) leading a poll for the 2026 Florida Republican gubernatorial primary in 2026.
A poll from Victory Insights posted on January 29th to X (formerly Twitter) suggested Rep. Donalds would win a Republican primary against Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nunez (R-FL), Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez with 31% of the vote, while Nunez, the closest competitor, only held 4% of the hypothetical vote.
A new @VictoryPolling survey shows @ByronDonalds far ahead of all other contenders in a hypothetical primary for Florida Governor.
31% - Byron Donalds
4% - Jeanette Nuñez
3% - Wilton Simpson
1% - Francis SuarezRead the full report: https://t.co/2MS9MwKk2o
(850 LV, 1/26-27/25) pic.twitter.com/Jb9dSRCvxc
— Victory Insights (@VictoryPolling) January 29, 2025
President Trump shared the tweet on Truth Social Monday morning, which many are taking to mean he is endorsing Rep. Donalds if he decides to run for Governor.
In addition to Victory Insight's tweet, Trump shared a list of notable supporters for the Florida Congressman, including Interior Secretary and former North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, and attorney Dan Newlin.
In December, Representative Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) posted a picture of herself and Donalds at a UFC match to X, saying, "with the next FL Governor @ByronDonalds."
Despite Trump's potentially game-breaking post, the Florida Congressman has not said anything official about making a run for Governor.
Near the end of January, Donalds said that running has "crossed his mind," but he emphasized that he is currently "focused on the job" in an appearance on Fox Business's Varney & Co.
"There is a lot of work to happen up here on Capitol Hill. My focus is to make sure that we get that through the House [of Representatives] and to our colleagues in the Senate and to President Trump's desk because we have one opportunity," Donalds told host Stuart Varney.
When pushed, the Florida Congressman continued, "Everything crosses my mind, and we have had other conversations like that. Now we have got to focus on the job. When the job is done, Stu, we can talk about other things."
As one of Trump's staunchest supporters in Congress, Donalds was a rumored member of Trump's Vice President shortlist on the campaign trail.
During his inauguration, Trump called out to Donalds and asked him to stand up, saying, "What a future this one has."
