Former President Bill Clinton will campaign for Florida Democrat gubernatorial nominee David Jolly at an interfaith event in Hollywood, Florida, on Tuesday, October 20, according to Jolly’s campaign. The appearance will be Clinton’s first public campaign stop of the 2026 midterms.
Jolly, a former Republican congressman who won the Democrat nomination in August, is running against Republican Rep. Byron Donalds to succeed outgoing Gov. Ron DeSantis. The race will be decided on November 3.
Florida Democrats have not won a governor’s race in more than three decades. Lawton Chiles, the last Democrat elected to the office, won reelection in 1994.
Polling on the contest has varied widely in recent weeks. A Stetson University poll released Tuesday showed Donalds leading Jolly 52% to 41% among modeled likely voters. A St. Pete Polls survey conducted October 5-7 showed the two candidates tied at 45% each, while a YouGov poll released last week had Donalds ahead 47% to 45%.
Clinton’s visit will coincide with the start of early voting in parts of Florida, giving Jolly a nationally known surrogate during the campaign’s closing stretch.
The Cook Political Report shifted its rating of the race from “Likely Republican” to “Lean Republican” earlier this month. Republicans remain favored, though the change reflects a tighter contest despite Donalds holding a substantial financial advantage over Jolly.
Clinton’s involvement in Florida politics this cycle isn’t limited to the governor’s race. He and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries headlined a New York fundraiser earlier this week for Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), according to MS NOW. Moskowitz is running in a newly drawn district the outlet described as a toss-up following a DeSantis-backed congressional remapping that altered his previous seat.
Clinton has made similar late-cycle campaign appearances in past elections. In the 2022 midterms, he campaigned in New York, New Jersey and South Texas in the final days before voting. In 2024, he made dozens of stops across battleground states for then-Vice President Kamala Harris and other candidates down the ballot.
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