Ron DeSantis refused to take Byron Donalds' phone calls.
Now Donalds is telling Bloomberg he expects DeSantis to be out there on the campaign trail beside him.
And the Democrat waiting for both of them in November is exactly who you'd expect Florida Democrats to run.
The Cold Shoulder That Wouldn't Die
This started the moment Trump endorsed Donalds in February 2025.
DeSantis didn't congratulate him.
He took a shot.
"The reality is we've achieved victories in Florida," the governor said. "Byron just hasn't been a part of any of the victories we've had here over the Left over these last years."
That quote still travels. DeSantis has kept firing it – or variations of it – for 18 months.
Before Donalds even announced, he spent days trying to get DeSantis on the phone to tell him personally.
The governor never picked up – and never called back.
https://twitter.com/DefiantLs/status/2054421376820248770?s=20
It only got colder from there. DeSantis publicly floated Casey DeSantis as a superior choice – citing a dinner story about Rush Limbaugh pointing to her and telling the governor she'd make an even better one.
He blasted the Republican Party of Florida for shutting out debates, calling the situation a "farce."
He took public shots at Donalds over a property tax amendment.
He has done everything short of endorsing someone else.
And now, with four weeks until the August 18 primary, DeSantis still hasn't endorsed anyone.
Donalds Doesn't Need Him – and He Knows It
Here's the thing Donalds understands that DeSantis seems determined to ignore: the math is over.
Donalds is pulling 48% in the most recent Republican survey – a 39-point lead over his nearest competitor.
He raised $45 million for the cycle.
He has Trump, Rick Scott, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Jeff Landry, Mike Johnson, and 17 members of Florida's congressional delegation behind him.
https://twitter.com/CryptidPolitics/status/2079966008069013597?s=20
When asked why he won't debate Jay Collins, James Fishback, and Paul Renner, Donalds gave the only honest answer available: "These candidates, they're still in single digits. Why would I elevate you when you couldn't elevate yourself?"
The feud with DeSantis has done exactly nothing to the race.
What's actually at stake now is November – and a general election opponent who shouldn't be taken lightly.
Who Is David Jolly
David Jolly represented a Tampa-area district in Congress from 2014 to 2017 – as a Republican.
He lost his re-election bid in 2016.
He spent the next several years building a national profile as a full-time Trump critic on MSNBC.
He left the Republican Party in 2018.
He registered as a Democrat in April 2025.
And last year he announced he was running for governor of Florida as a Democrat.
Let that biography settle for a moment.
This is the Democrat Party's best hope for the Florida governorship – a man who couldn't hold a swing district in Congress, abandoned his party twice, and reinvented himself as a cable news commentator specifically by attacking the sitting president of the United States.
His own party is hammering him over abortion.
When Jolly was in Congress, he said life began at conception.
Now he says his views have "evolved."
Democrats aren't buying it – his strongest critics right now aren't conservatives, they're progressives in his own primary who don't trust the conversion.
https://twitter.com/ByronDonalds/status/2079967735488950708?s=20
Donalds leads Jolly 44% to 39% in general election polling.
The Emerson survey notes Hispanic voters are nearly evenly split – 42% Donalds, 41% Jolly – which is the one number that requires attention.
Why DeSantis Needs to Get Over It
The DeSantis-Donalds feud was always about the 2024 presidential primary – specifically, about Donalds backing Trump instead of DeSantis when DeSantis needed Florida Republicans to hold.
That's a grudge.
A legitimate one, maybe, from DeSantis’ perspective.
But it's still a grudge, and holding it through November of a governor's race serves nobody in Florida except Democrats.
DeSantis' own preferred alternative – Casey DeSantis – pulled 7% in the Emerson poll.
The argument that Donalds wasn't "part of the victories" rings a lot less convincingly when the man is sitting at 48% and his closest rival can't crack double digits.
Donalds said plainly on Bloomberg: "I believe that Governor DeSantis completely agrees with us about the next steps for Florida. And so I look forward to having his endorsement and being out there on the campaign trail with him."
That's not desperation.
That's a closing argument.
If Donalds wins the primary on August 18, DeSantis' relevance becomes one question: is he going to help hold Florida red, or is he going to sulk while a converted MSNBC commentator tries to take his seat?
Sources:
- A.G. Gancarski, "Byron Donalds expects Ron DeSantis to campaign with him against David Jolly," Florida Politics, July 22, 2026.
- Emerson College Polling, "Florida 2026 Poll: Donalds Leads GOP Primary for Governor," April 2, 2026.
- Romy Ellenbogen, "DeSantis allies break away, endorse Byron Donalds for Florida governor," Tampa Bay Times, July 2026.
- Anthony Man, "Former Republican David Jolly launches longshot bid for Florida governor as a Democrat," Yahoo News, 2025.
- FL Voice News, "POLL: Donalds all but clinches GOP nomination for Florida governor," July 13, 2026.
