Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings officially launched his gubernatorial campaign on Thursday at the Rosen Centre in Orlando.
Demings, a Democrat, has served Orange County for more than four decades, first as Orlando police chief, then as Orange County sheriff, and now as Orange County mayor.
Demings runs as a crisis manager and unifier
He said he wants to take his experience leading Orange County through different crises, and use it to help Floridians navigate the current moment, when many are being priced out of the state.
“It's difficult to lead when things are going poorly. I've had to lead through all of those circumstances, from terror attacks to mass shooting situations to dealing with hurricanes to leading during a global pandemic. I've been on the ground,” Demings said.
Demings said that’s in direct opposition to one of his opponents, Republican U.S. Congressman Byron Donalds who is thought by many to be the frontrunner and has been endorsed by President Donald Trump.
“Byron Donalds has never been a crisis manager or leader. He has never worked at this granular level, from being a beat cop to where I'm sitting today, wrestling with the issues that average Floridians have to deal with. He has not done that. He's in Washington, D.C.,” said Demings.
Demings also called himself a unifier. Someone who can bring all Floridians, regardless of political party, together, and restore what he called normalcy to the state, whether that’s by improving public safety or expanding Medicaid.
He said he has experience working across the aisle at all levels of government.
“So I'm going to run to be the people's governor and work with every level of government. Government works best when the federal, state and local governments work together, regardless of whatever political affiliation it is,” Demings said. “In my four and a half decades of public service, when I've been serving people. I've never, ever asked someone that I was serving, ‘Are you a Democrat? Are you a Republican?’ It doesn't matter.”
What’s next for Demings
First up, Demings says he’ll be conducting a listening tour across Florida, talking to voters from all political parties about what’s on their hearts and minds ahead of the November 2026 election.
He said he also wants to put together task forces, panels of real Floridians to tackle the issues plaguing the state, from homelessness to a lack of affordable mental health care to redistricting.
Demings was born and raised in Orlando and is married to the former Democratic U.S. Congresswoman Val Demings. They have three children and five grandchildren.
So far, nearly 30 people are running to replace Gov. Ron DeSantis who is term limited. That list of names includes former Democratic U.S. Representative David Jolly.
Will he ride the blue wave?
A blue wave across the country this week saw the election of Democrat Zohran Mamdani as New York City’s first Muslim mayor and Democrat Mary Sheffield, the first female mayor of Detroit, among others.
Jolly says he feels more hopeful and optimistic Florida can flip blue in the 2026 elections, whether that’s electing him or Demings.
In a campaign memo Jolly said, “As Democrats across the country are celebrating victories this week by focusing on affordability and the everyday struggles of working families, Floridians are demanding that same kind of leadership. Leadership rooted not in partisan division, but in practical solutions that make life better for everyone,” Jolly wrote.
While U.S. Congressman Byron Donalds had this to say, “Jerry Demings’ plan for Florida is the same as Zohran Mamdani’s plan for New York: more government and higher taxes. These are the same policies the left used under Joe Biden to drive the high prices Jerry Demings is complaining about now.”
Current Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis and Florida Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins have not announced publicly whether they’ll run for governor. Both were supposedly considering a run for the office.
