TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida’s race for governor is becoming a fight over who’s too extreme and who’s too connected.
Republican nominee Byron Donalds is portraying Democrat David Jolly as an ally of socialism. Jolly and fellow Democrats are countering with attacks on Republican donors, President Donald Trump’s policies and the cost of living.
The competing pitches are arriving just as voters typically begin paying closer attention, according to political analyst Susan MacManus.
At the GOP’s midterm convention in Dallas on Wednesday, Donalds accused Jolly of embracing “radical socialism.”
“This election cycle is about one thing: common sense versus crazy,” Donalds said.
He singled out Jolly’s proposal for public hurricane coverage, describing it as a government takeover of property insurance and warning it would leave Floridians paying a new tax. Donalds argued the costs would reach beyond coastal homeowners to renters and other insurance customers.
Donalds also credited Republican tax and regulatory policies with Florida’s economic growth and blamed Democrats for rising costs.
The ideological theme continued Thursday at Miami’s Bay of Pigs Museum, where Gov. Ron DeSantis promoted classroom lessons about the dangers of communism.
Donalds’ running mate, former state Sen. Bryan Avila, joined DeSantis and accused Democrats of promoting socialist policies. Avila invoked his family’s experience fleeing communist Cuba.
“In fact, I’ve offered several of them to give them a one-way trip to Cuba, so that they understand the horrors of communism,” Avila said.
The Republican attacks also extend to state Rep. Angie Nixon, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, whose association with the Democratic Socialists of America has become a campaign issue.
Nixon joined the organization in June, according to PolitiFact’s reporting published by WLRN. The group advocates replacing capitalism with democratic socialism and collective ownership of major industries.
Nixon has rejected the socialist label, saying she joined over shared priorities such as universal health care. Axios reported her explanation.
“The right-wing machine is going to do everything that they can to attack us and take our eyes off the fact that we deserve health care, we deserve access to quality public schools,” Nixon said in a recent podcast appearance.
Democrats are trying to turn the conversation back to household budgets and Republican leadership.
During a virtual news conference Wednesday, Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried accused Donalds of supporting Trump’s policies at Floridians’ expense.
“Let me be clear: there is nothing about this record that is worth celebrating,” Fried said.
Jolly’s attack follows the money. He alleged that donors supporting Donalds expect influence in return.
“The same people that have owned Tallahassee for 30 years are buying Byron right now, because they want to control Tallahassee, not because they care about Byron,” Jolly said in an online video.
Jolly framed his campaign as a chance to disrupt that power, arguing that a coalition seeking change could overcome Donalds’ financial advantage.
MacManus said the period after Labor Day has long marked a turning point in voter attention. Campaigns time their strongest messages to when people are preparing to cast ballots, she said.
“There’s an old saying that you save your best ads and strategies for right at the point when people actually begin casting ballots,” MacManus said.
But getting voters’ attention is only part of the challenge. Distrust of politics and lower participation in midterm elections make turnout difficult, she said. Liking an ad or favoring a candidate in a poll does not guarantee someone will vote.
“The game is absolutely turnout,” MacManus said.
For both parties, the test is whether the attacks translate into votes.
