‘A Jolly Florida’: Jolly announces Gwen Graham as gubernatorial running mate

David Jolly, the Democratic frontrunner in the Florida gubernatorial race, named former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham as his running mate during a Tallahassee press conference Wednesday, feet from the Old Capitol.

“I want a lieutenant governor capable of serving our state, not just as my governing partner, but as a leader,” Jolly, a former Republican U.S. representative, told onlookers, minutes after cheers of a “Jolly Florida” echoed among his supporters.

He added that while he had “five or six” other candidates under consideration, “The right decision is Gwen Graham.”

He emphasized their bipartisan relationship during their time in Congress, highlighting joint work on preventing offshore oil drilling, gun reform, and veterans’ rights. Jolly served in Congress from 2014 to 2017 as a Republican, became an independent for six years, and then switched to the Democratic Party in April 2025.

“I’m ready to govern with him — stakes are too high in this state to do otherwise. The Florida we all love is slipping away,” said Graham, daughter of the late former Democratic Gov. Bob Graham.

Despite Wednesday’s lieutenant governor announcement, news of Jolly’s pick broke on Monday. A reverend allied to the campaign let slip that Graham would be Jolly’s running mate during a Sunday service.

The unveiling came just days after Jolly’s top Democratic opponent, former Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, ended his campaign following a cancer diagnosis. Jolly is one of 10 Democratic candidates in the race so far, but far and away has the highest name ID of his same-party rivals.

But although the Democratic nomination may appear all but clinched for the 53-year-old, it’s the looming general election that poses the largest challenge to his campaign. Republicans have registered some 1.5 million more than the Democrats, and a statewide Democratic candidate hasn’t won since 2018, when Nikki Fried became the state’s one-term agriculture commissioner.

The Trump-endorsed U.S. Rep Byron Donalds is the heavy favorite for the Republican nomination so far. As of March 31, the latest campaign finance data available, Jolly had raised $5 million compared to Donalds’ $67 million. The next campaign finance reports for the April 1 to May 31 quarter were due later Wednesday.

Jolly also announced that Democratic state Sen. Tina Polsky is his campaign’s new head adviser for public policy and government affairs. Polsky announced last month that she would not seek reelection to her Boca Raton seat.

Jolly and Graham have campaign stops later this week in Tampa, Orlando, and Miami.