Florida governor’s race: Jay Collins claims Byron Donalds would lose to Democrat David Jolly

ST PETERSBURG, Fla - Florida Lt. Gov. Jay Collins said Monday that if Byron Donalds is the nominee of the Republican Party in the race for governor, that Donalds would lose the November election to a Democrat.

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fort Myers), who holds an early lead in most polling thanks to an endorsement from President Trump, responded by saying that Collins is "desperate."

What they're saying:

Collins made the claim at a press conference in St. Pete that he called to deny rumors he's considering dropping out of the race, and said he's dropping at least $1 million in ads.

"Polling indicates a serious risk of David Jolly becoming the next governor of Florida if Byron is a Republican nominee," Collins said.

The dossier - which he says is filled with anti-Donalds material, is intended to turn the tide of coverage against Donalds.

"I wrestled with whether we should have a press conference like this," Collins explained. "And where I landed was simple. These issues get talked about now, where they get talked about in October."

Rep. Donalds, who was campaigning Monday in Sarasota, responded to the dossier that includes claims about a former advisor's criminal history, Donalds' involvement with drugs, and his congressional voting record, by saying it has all been asked-and-answered.

"We typically get to this point in campaigns, the desperation starts to set in, and it's really sad to see," said Donalds.

The backstory:

As for the claims about whether Donalds could blow a three-decade gubernatorial winning streak for Florida Republicans against former St. Pete Rep. David Jolly, his campaign pointed to a poll that shows Donalds ahead by five, and they add they believe the poll was even weighted incorrectly against Donalds.

"Just because you have a Democrat candidate that sounds nice and says good things, what are they actually going to do when they're in office?" said Donalds. "Because that's what matters."

Jolly campaigned in Seminole and Marion Counties this weekend, areas Democrats have struggled in of late, and insists that he could beat any of the Republicans in the race.

"I'm going to let them have that family conversation," said Jolly. "I just know that whomever they nominate is going to represent a type of politics from the past."

The campaign of former Florida house speaker Paul Renner, another Republican candidate in the race, pointed out that Renner has already been on the record in saying that, "a vote for Donalds is a vote for David Jolly."

Jolly is squaring off in the fight for the Democratic nomination against Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.