Calling himself the “Ted Lasso” of political discourse, Democratic gubernatorial nominee David Jolly says he would be able to work across party lines and is framing the Nov. 3 election as a “generational moment” for Floridians.
Jolly, a former Republican congressman who became a Democrat before launching his gubernatorial campaign last year, is running against U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, a Trump-endorsed Republican.
In Monday’s episode of State Affairs’ “Between the Lines with Dara Kam” podcast, Jolly acknowledged that Donalds’ campaign has heavily outraised him and is spending big money heading into the election’s final weeks.
But Jolly argued that money and attack ads won’t substitute for voters’ trust.
He contends that Donalds has plateaued and is not making gains among voters.
“Consider this: Byron's now spent $100 million, and the race is tied. … The more he spends, the worse he does, or at least it doesn't move the needle. I do worry about the resources he has to pay people in the field. That’s real,” Jolly said.
With mail-in voting underway, both candidates are reaching out to Black Floridians — a critical voting bloc for Democrats.
Donalds, if elected, would become Florida’s first Black governor, a possibility he acknowledges while embracing policies banning diversity, equity and inclusion programs and services.
In a recent town hall at Florida A&M University, Donalds urged attendees at the historically Black university to look beyond traditional partisan alignments and evaluate candidates on their stances on issues such as property insurance and making the state more affordable.
“Stop moving like a monolith,” said Donalds, who last week assembled a team of Black business, religious and elected leaders to rally support.
Meanwhile, civil rights leader Al Sharpton joined Jolly and his running mate, former Congresswoman Gwen Graham, at a prominent Tallahassee church on Sunday.
On Monday, Jolly and U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., another civil rights leader, were hosting events with Black student leaders and “Divine Nine” fraternity and sorority chapters at FAMU and Florida State University.
Jolly frames the candidates’ differences on Black history and civil rights as especially significant, pointing to his proposals for an Office of Civil Rights and broader history education. He also criticized Donalds’ record and statements on those issues.
“I would ask that we consider what history are we reaching for, because I don’t think in Byron Donalds we empower all communities,” Jolly said on the podcast, adding his campaign has “built an agenda to lift everybody up.”
Jolly also addressed a series of attack ads he said misrepresented his positions on issues including property insurance, oil drilling and Social Security.
“In a world of Donald Trump, I'm trying to be Ted Lasso,” Jolly said. “I don't want to platform the division, the rancor and the vitriol.”
But Jolly defended an ad in which he called Donalds a “liar” for making false claims about the Democrat.
“I can't let lies go without a response. … If I am going to call him out as a liar, I’m going to deliver it straight to camera in my voice,” Jolly said.
When asked how he would achieve policy goals in areas such as education, healthcare and homeowners’ insurance with a Republican-controlled Legislature, Jolly said he had a history of working across partisan lines while in Congress.
He also argued that his agenda could appeal to voters across party lines, including Republicans frustrated with rapid development and what he characterized as political influence by special interests.
“I think we're going to perform very well because there's an element in our politics that is emerging outside of party loyalty and party registration. The only reason that a Democrat is competitive this cycle is because there are enough independents and disaffected Republicans who are saying, ‘I don't like what I'm seeing in Tallahassee and Washington,’ and there's two camps here,” Jolly said. “It's very fascinating. It's just emerged in the last few weeks.”
Dara Kam is the senior Statehouse reporter for State Affairs Florida. Reach her at dkam@stateaffairs.com or on X @TheDaraKam.
