David Jolly spent 18 months calling himself the brave outsider who would finally fix Florida.
Now Byron Donalds offered him three debates in front of Florida voters – and Jolly ran.
Jolly just told Florida he won't debate Donalds, and his reason is something you have to read to believe.
Jolly's Excuse Is That Donalds Lies Too Much to Debate
That's not a paraphrase.
Jolly told Scripps reporter Forrest Saunders that debates "would not create constructive, honest conversation" because of Donalds' "repeated lies and bad faith."
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Think about what that actually means.
A man running for governor of Florida – the third-largest state in the country – is telling 23 million people he won't show up to defend his positions because the other guy might say something he disagrees with.
That's not a debate strategy.
That's a confession.
The Hypocrisy Is Almost Impressive
Jolly's campaign already called Donalds a coward – using almost those exact words.
When Donalds agreed to three debates last week, Jolly's team fired back claiming he'd already accepted two debates and accused Donalds of "ducking" the opportunity.
That was last week.
This week, Jolly is the one ducking.
He even tried to use Donalds' own primary record against him – pointing out that Donalds skipped debates against Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, former Speaker Paul Renner, and businessman James Fishback during the GOP primary.
Donalds skipped those debates and won by nearly 23 points.
But here's the difference Jolly doesn't want to talk about: Donalds was the prohibitive frontrunner in a primary he was going to win no matter what.
Jolly is trailing in a general election he needs every vote to survive – and he's still running from the stage.
Florida GOP Chairman Evan Power immediately tagged Jolly with the nickname that's going to follow him to Election Day: "Dodgy Dave."
The name fits.
Here Is What Jolly Does Not Want Floridians to Ask Him About
Jolly's signature policy is a government takeover of Florida's homeowners insurance market.
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He wants to pull hurricane coverage completely out of the private market and hand it to a state-run fund he says needs to reach $30 to $40 billion to work.
He says he'll pay for it by taxing insurers, raiding tourist development taxes, and skimming real estate transaction fees.
Donalds ran an ad this month calling it a $1,000 hurricane tax on Florida families.
Jolly called it "all lies" – but then acknowledged his campaign has never released a detailed plan for voters to examine.
He also supports restoring abortion protections under Roe v. Wade, tightening gun laws, and pulling money out of school choice programs.
A debate stage is exactly where Donalds would walk through all of that – line by line, in front of every Florida voter watching.
Now you know why Jolly isn't showing up.
What Jolly Is Actually Afraid Of
David Jolly was a Republican congressman who switched parties to run as a Democrat.
That's a hard sell to Florida voters in 2026 – a state Trump carried by double digits – and Jolly knows it.
The moment he stands on a stage next to Trump's hand-picked candidate – a congressman with a $22 million war chest and a commanding primary win – Florida voters are going to see the contrast in person.
Jolly told reporters he's held over 300 town halls in 18 months and will keep meeting voters in their communities.
Town halls where he controls the room, picks the questions, and sets the agenda.
That's not campaigning – that's a press event with folding chairs.
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Democrats have turned debate-dodging into a standard playbook move – Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs refused to debate Kari Lake in 2022, won, and is now refusing to debate her 2026 challenger as well.
The calculation is cold: a bad debate moment can sink a campaign overnight, and voters haven't punished Democrats for ducking yet.
But Jolly's situation is different from Hobbs' – she's an incumbent with a polling lead.
Jolly is a party-switcher pushing a $30 to $40 billion government insurance scheme in a red state, trying to convince undecided voters he's the real deal.
Running from a debate doesn't say "principled candidate."
It says he already knows he loses the argument – and he'd rather Florida voters never find out what that argument actually is.
Sources:
- Michael Costeines, "David Jolly Declines Debates with Byron Donalds in Governor's Race," Floridian Press, September 21, 2026.
- Staff, "Florida Primary: Byron Donalds, David Jolly to compete for Florida governor in November," Fox 13 News, August 18, 2026.
- Staff, "Donalds challenges leading Democrat to three debates," Bay News 9, July 20, 2026.
- Mitch Perry, "Jolly and Donalds clash on property insurance proposals," WUSF, September 17, 2026.
- Staff, "David Jolly proposes bold state-run insurance plan in Florida," Fox 13 News, 2026.
- Staff, "Jolly winning independents as he battles Donalds for Florida governor's mansion," Washington Examiner, August 18, 2026.
- Staff, "Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs again refuses in-person face-off against GOP opponent," Washington Examiner, August 15, 2026.
