ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Democratic Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings has filed papers to run for Florida governor, joining a slew of candidates from both sides of the aisle seeking to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Demings, who leads the county that is home to Orlando and several of its theme park resorts, filed paperwork Friday to run for Florida’s top job, according to state election records.
The former Orange County sheriff learned the details of a Florida-wide election campaign three years ago. At the time, his wife, former U.S. Rep. Val Demings, ran unsuccessfully as the Democratic candidate for a Republican Senate seat against Republican Marco Rubio.
If successful, Demings would be the first African-American governor of the nation’s third-most populous state, but he would not be the first black Florida Democratic candidate for governor. Former Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum lost to DeSantis in 2018 by the narrowest margin in Florida history.
A spokesperson for the Demings campaign did not immediately respond to email inquiries Monday.
Since DeSantis moved into the governor’s mansion in 2019, Demings has become one of the last Democratic holdouts in the heavily Republican state. Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris won about 56% of the vote in Orange County, while Republican Donald Trump won 56.1% of the vote in Florida.
In addition to Demings, 28 other candidates have filed to run for Florida governor, most of whom are considered favorites.
Potential candidates include former Republican Rep. David Jolly, who left the party during President Trump’s first term and is running as a Democrat. Republican U.S. Congressman Byron Donald was endorsed by President Trump. and former Republican House Speaker Paul Renner.
