Florida's Latest News

Byron Donalds heads into the Primary with $58M banked — and no rival above $500K

Naples Republican Byron Donalds made a statement with the biggest fundraising operation any candidate has built ahead of a Florida gubernatorial Primary, and the final filing period put an exclamation point on the sentence.

All told, he brought in more than $12 million to his campaign account and more than $99 million to the Friends of Byron Donalds PAC — roughly $111 million between them.

During the first 13 days of August, he raised nearly $675,000 to the campaign account and $5.255 million to the political committee. The leading donor was the Sports Betting Alliance of Arlington, Virginia — the trade group representing DraftKings, FanDuel, Fanatics, BetMGM and bet365 — which cut a $1 million check. That single contribution is four times what the group had given in Florida all cycle to that point.

The biggest expenditures over the same stretch were more than $3.7 million for media placements and more than $900,000 for canvassing.

Donald Trump endorses 4 GOP state House incumbents in Primary Election races

President Donald Trump threw in some last-minute endorsements this weekend for Republicans running in Florida’s state Legislature races in Tuesday’s Primary Election.

Trump was active on his Truth Social media account, where he expressed his support for four Republican incumbents running in races for the Florida House of Representatives.

Trump said Republicans need to vote for incumbent Rep. Kim Kendell, who is seeking re-election to the 18th District seat in the Florida House, which represents most of the northern half of St. Johns County on the First Coast.

“A Highly Respected Air Traffic Controller and Small Business Owner, prior to becoming a distinguished State Representative, Kim has dedicated her life to serving her Community,” Trump said.

4 candidates vie for GOP nomination in HD 74 to succeed James Buchanan

Four Republican candidates are each making their case to succeed term-limited Sarasota Republican state Rep. James Buchanan.

RealManage Division President Les Nichols, Venice Mayor Nick Pachota, former congressional staffer Kelly Ann Walker and Peeples Insurance Agency Founder Jennifer Peeples Winkler are battling for the GOP nomination in House District 74.

Nichols’ campaign highlights his Marine Corps service and decades of experience working with homeowners and condominium associations. Pachota is running on his record as a first responder, local business owner and elected official. Walker is emphasizing her experience in Republican politics. Winkler has focused her campaign on insurance costs and limiting development, along with her business experience.

Florida Southern joins efforts to combat citrus greening

Florida Southern College is joining the effort to help save Florida’s citrus industry.

Before Florida Southern was built, the land it sits on was home to acres of citrus trees.

“All of this was really a citrus grove, and when they built the campus, they retained some parts of those groves,” said Michael Weber, dean of the FSC Barnett School of Business and Free Enterprise.

Weber said citrus greening eventually devastated those groves. Now, decades later, the college has planted 45 new trees, including different citrus varieties and rootstocks. As part of a business science course, the new groves will serve as a living laboratory.

Horticulture science professor Shea Keene said students will monitor each protective tent and collect data as the trees grow.

“As we’re tracking the performance of these trees, we will share that information with local growers, with UF, they do a lot of citrus research as well, and really just anyone that can benefit from whatever we find,” Keene said.