David Jolly leads Byron Donalds by 5 points in a Byron Donalds Florida governor poll conducted June 11-14 by Change Research. The hypothetical General Election matchup gave voters biographical information before they chose, and Jolly came out ahead.
Among likely voters, Jolly was at 49% to Donalds’ 43%. Change Research surveyed 1,273 voters, including 1,015 who said they were likely to vote this year, and the setup matters because the ballot test was not a bare name-vs.-name question.
Jolly And Donalds
The poll described Jolly as a Democrat and a former member of Congress who was featured on 60 Minutes. It also used the phrase "truth teller" and said he wants "to clean up political corruption" and "believes everyone deserves a shot at work, wages, and wealth, and that their rights should be protected and their dignity celebrated."
Donalds’ bio in the poll said he was "endorsed by President Donald Trump," "endorsed by dozens of county sheriffs who say they trust him to make Florida safe," "in the trenches against the rise of woke culture in schools, corporate America, the financial services industry, and our military," and that he "will continue fighting the woke left in Florida."
Party Numbers
The result came even as the Democratic Party remained weak in the poll overall. Fifty-five percent of respondents viewed the Democratic Party unfavorably, while 31% viewed it favorably. The Republican Party drew 41% approval and 50% unfavorable opinion.
That split shows Jolly running ahead of his party’s standing in the poll, not because Democrats were broadly popular, but because the candidate test moved some voters once they saw the supplied biographies. The poll also found 66% of respondents said their personal income was falling behind the cost of living, and 74% of unaffiliated voters said there was an imbalance between income and expenses.
Gwen Graham Added
When Gwen Graham was added as Jolly’s running mate in the poll question, Jolly’s support reached 50%. That puts the matchup only a few points away from a majority once the survey introduced a fuller candidate picture.
The practical read for voters is simple: the 5-point edge came from a ballot test shaped by candidate descriptions, not from a final General Election ballot. A June survey with 1,273 respondents shows Jolly starting from a stronger position than the party labels alone would suggest, but the result depends on the same bio framing that produced it.
