Saturday, 07 June 2025

New Republican Candidate Emerges In Florida’s Governor Race

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Florida State Senator Jason Pizzo, who recently left the Democratic Party, announced he will run for the governor of Florida as an Independent.

Sen. Jason Pizzo, a Democrat elected to Florida’s Senate, made national news last month after announcing he was leaving the Democratic Party in a speech on the Senate floor.

Pizzo now wants to be the next Governor of Florida in a race that will not feature Gov. DeSantis due to term limits.

When CBS Miami asked him if he was going to enter the race, he responded, “Yes, I am.”

Pizzo added, “Everyone else already in the gubernatorial mix has severe and prohibitive baggage, or vast limitations, in leading this state, I’m focused on remaining the ethical, informed, honest and rational public servant I’ve always been.”

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Check out what Politico reported:

State Sen. Jason Pizzo, who recently proclaimed the Florida Democratic Party “dead” before leaving the party, said Friday he will run for governor as an independent in 2026.

Pizzo has been hinting for months that he planned to mount a run to succeed Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who cannot run again due to term limits.

The Miami state senator was elected as a Democrat and had risen to become the Senate Democratic leader, but he dramatically announced his departure in a speech last month on the Senate floor in which he castigated Democrats. Pizzo, who has often been seen as a centrist and has clashed at times with the progressive wing of the party, then switched his official registration to no-party affiliation.

The former Democratic Senate leader told CBS Miami on Friday, “Yes I am,” when he was asked if he was planning to run. He contended many “excited” people had reached out to him after he ended his affiliation with the Democratic Party, and he pointed out that independent voters make up a significant part of the state’s electorate.
“NPAs decide who win elections in this state, and there’s 3.7 million of them,” Pizzo said, referring to voters who are officially listed as having no-party affiliation.

When reached by POLITICO, Pizzo said he was prepared to highlight his differences with the candidates from the major parties.

“Everyone else already in the gubernatorial mix has severe and prohibitive baggage, or vast limitations, in leading this state,” Pizzo said in a text message. “I’m focused on remaining the ethical, informed, honest and rational public servant I’ve always been.”

Per TCPalm:

Two weeks after quitting the Democratic Party and becoming a no-party-affiliated member of the Legislature, state Sen. Jason Pizzo said he’ll enter the governor’s race.

Pizzo, of Sunny Isles Beach, told CBS News Miami on May 9 he’ll be a candidate. As an NPA candidate, he’ll forgo a primary campaign and be on the November 2026 ballot.

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“We need somebody who can balance a checkbook, who understands finance, not just economic theory; who’s concerned about infrastructure and resiliency and the environment and education and all of these things that are top of mind for people that are just trying to keep a roof over their head, keep their kids clothed and educated,” Pizzo said.

A former assistant state attorney for the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, the 48-year-old Pizzo was first elected to the Senate in 2018. He was reelected in 2022 and became the Senate Democratic leader after the 2024 election. He’ll be term-limited next year.

But Pizzo was more centrist than the rest of his caucus and on April 24 announced he was stepping down as Democratic leader and leaving the party, declaring the Florida Democratic Party “dead.” That remark was ripped by Democrats who insisted the party still has a pulse in the Sunshine State.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport.

View the original article here.


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