James Fishback

James Fishback (Republican Party) ran for election for Governor of Florida. He lost in the Republican primary on August 18, 2026.

Biography

Fishback founded the investment firm Azoria and the nonprofit Incubate Debate.^[1] His other experience includes working as a consultant for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) during the second Trump administration.^[2]

Elections

2026

Florida gubernatorial election, 2026 (August 18 Democratic primary)

Florida gubernatorial election, 2026 (August 18 Republican primary)

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

General election for Governor of Florida

The following candidates are running in the general election for Governor of Florida on November 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		David Jolly (D) / Gwen Graham (D)
		Byron Donalds (R) / Bryan Avila (R)
		Scott Jewett (L) / Nicole Skelly (L)
	Submit photo	Dean Abrams (No Party Affiliation) / Joseph Van Vactor (No Party Affiliation)
	Submit photo Submit photo	Charles Burkett (No Party Affiliation) / Ruben Coto (R)
	Submit photo	Jeffrey Datto (No Party Affiliation) / Juan Santana (R)
	Submit photo	Moliere Dimanche (No Party Affiliation) / Benjiman Rojas (No Party Affiliation)
		Frank Russo (No Party Affiliation) / Rachel Rodriguez (R)
	Submit photo	Kathy Anderson (No Party Affiliation) / Daniel Nokovich (No Party Affiliation) (Write-in)
	Submit photo	Erik Morris (No Party Affiliation) / LeRoy Alaways (No Party Affiliation) (Write-in)

	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Brandon L. McIntyre (Constitution Party)
Surindar Bedi (No Party Affiliation)
James Brown (No Party Affiliation)
Insley Evans (No Party Affiliation)
Neil Gillespie (No Party Affiliation)
Mourice Hylton (No Party Affiliation)
Holly Klask (No Party Affiliation)
Andrea Lynn Klink (No Party Affiliation)
Desmond Meade (No Party Affiliation)
Jennifer Pearl (No Party Affiliation)
Anthony Pizzarelli (No Party Affiliation)
Jason Pizzo (No Party Affiliation)
Reginald Strachan (No Party Affiliation)
David Wexler (No Party Affiliation)
Jayson Winer (No Party Affiliation)
Robert Elmore (Unaffiliated Independent)
David DeJesus (No Party Affiliation) (Write-in)
Richard Dembinsky (No Party Affiliation) (Write-in)
Rodney Glover (No Party Affiliation) (Write-in)
Mohammad Khan (No Party Affiliation) (Write-in)

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for Governor of Florida

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for Governor of Florida on August 18, 2026.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	David Jolly	61.0	747,561
	Dayna Foster	15.1	184,882
	Dotie Joseph	9.5	116,973
	Evelyn Castillo-Bach	7.8	94,973
	Thomas Fernandez	3.8	46,447
	Stephann Norman	2.8	34,414

	There were no incumbents in this race. Vote totals may change until results are certified. Source 1 Source 2 Source 3	Total votes: 1,225,250
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary

Republican primary for Governor of Florida

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for Governor of Florida on August 18, 2026.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Byron Donalds	47.9	796,267
		Jay Collins	25.1	417,571
		James Fishback	10.4	173,575
		Paul Renner	8.5	141,304
		Bobby Williams Jr.	4.1	67,467
		Rachel Rodriguez	1.6	27,129
	Submit photo	Jim Holcomb	0.8	12,952
		James Shaw	0.5	7,723
		Arthur McCaffrey	0.4	6,926
	Submit photo	Caneste Succe	0.4	6,137
		Daniel Nokovich	0.3	5,093

	There were no incumbents in this race. Vote totals may change until results are certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 1,662,144
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Libertarian Party primary

The Libertarian Party primary scheduled for August 18, 2026, was canceled. Scott Jewett (L) advanced from the Libertarian Party primary for Governor of Florida without appearing on the ballot.