Florida governor’s race tightens as Cook shifts rating

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(The Center Square) – Florida Democrats reported a larger monthly gain in active voter registrations than Republicans as the Cook Political Report improved Democrats’ prospects in the governor’s race.

The Florida Democratic Party said this is the first time “in years” that Democrats have out-registered Republicans in the Sunshine State.

It comes the same week the Cook Political Report announced Thursday that it had shifted the Florida governor’s race from “Likely Republican” to “Lean Republican.”

The nonpartisan analysis group updated the race’s rating from “Likely Republican” to “Lean Republican.” It represents a further decline in Republican chances as earlier this year the race was rated as “Solid Republican.”

The Cook Political Report said the Democratic Party is taking advantage of President Donald Trump’s poor approval ratings in races across the country, including the gubernatorial race in historically red Texas as well as Florida.

“Cash-flush Republicans are still favored in both pricey states, which we now rate as Lean Republican, but given the grim political environment for the GOP, we can’t rule out the possibility of an upset in one or both contests, even in states Trump carried by double digits just two years ago,” said Jessica Taylor with the Cook Political Report.

The last time Florida had a Democrat as governor was 1999.

Currently, Republicans control the governor’s seat and have majorities in both the state Senate and the House.

Florida A&M University announced it was canceling a planned debate between Democrat David Jolly and Republican Byron Donalds after Jolly said he would not participate.

At the time, Jolly said, “you can’t debate a liar.” Donalds replied, “David, you became a Democrat in April 2025, SIX weeks before you filed to run for Governor. The real debate is, who are you?”

Jolly faces an uphill battle on the funding side as Donalds has raised significantly more funds than Jolly.

Donalds, on the other hand, recently faced criticism for removing references to Trump’s endorsement from his campaign website.

He responded to the criticism, saying, “I am proud to have President Trump’s endorsement,” but offered no explanation for the website updates.