Rep. Byron Donalds is running to be the next governor of Florida. He's racked up several impressive endorsements, including from Florida Republican Rep. Mike Haridopolos, Rep. Aaron Bean, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, and President Donald Trump.
Florida's Lt. Governor, Jay Collins, is considering challenging Donalds, according to Politico:
President Donald Trump’s hand-picked choice to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis may soon face another Republican challenger: Lt. Gov. Jay Collins.
Collins told POLITICO this week that his family is supportive of him running for governor and that, if he enters the race, he’ll do so this year — possibly as soon as October or November.
Collins just became Lt. Governor after Ron DeSantis appointed him to the post last month.
But a keen-eyed X user noticed Collins had an interesting place to write his speech notes: the palm of his hand.
Jay Collins really wrote his entire speech on the palm of his hand, like a 5th grader!? 🤣😂
— Brenden Dilley (@WarlordDilley) September 19, 2025
This goofball has no chance against Byron Donalds.https://t.co/MhByHdm7KG pic.twitter.com/LapL75Nd60
While most of the writing on Collins's hand isn't legible, there are clearly some bullet points, including the first one that says "Intro."
One X user said, "Byron Donalds will be the next Governor," and another added, "He has to write it on his hand because he doesn’t even believe in what he says." Others wondered why Collins didn't use notecards.
Polling shows Donalds far ahead of any Republican opponents, including Jay Collins. In a poll from September 8, Ryan Tyson for The American Promise had Donalds leading with 40% while Collins and Paul Renner each had 2%. Another poll showed Donalds would beat Democrat David Jolly in the general election.
In response to that poll, Ryan Smith, Chief Strategist for the Byron Donalds for Governor Campaign said, "The data is consistent and clear. President Trump’s endorsement is the gold standard. Byron Donalds will be Florida’s next governor because he is THE proven conservative fighter endorsed by President Trump."
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