JD Vance rallies Florida Republicans for Moody, Donalds in tight 2026 midterms
In a Lakeland, Florida rally, Vice President JD Vance introduced and endorsed statewide Republican candidates including Sen. Ashley Moody (seeking full term after appointment), Rep. Byron Donalds (for governor to succeed term-limited Ron DeSantis), and others. He highlighted their records on public safety, immigration enforcement, food transparency, post-storm aid, and insurance reform for homeowners. Vance recounted a humorous RNC anecdote about Donalds, defended law enforcement with the story of wounded Deputy Moon, and criticized Democratic opponents Angie Nixon (self-described socialist with a 'Cafe Resistance' bookstore) and David Jolly (former Republican turned MSNBC/CNN pundit) as radicals who support defund-the-police policies, higher taxes, and government control of schools. The speech reviewed the Trump administration's claimed accomplishments over 18 months: 1 million new U.S. jobs (60,000 in Florida), inflation reduction from 8% under Biden to below 2-3%, falling rents, sharp drug price drops via pressure on pharma, new tax deductions for tips/overtime/Social Security/car loans, ending DEI, border enforcement with no releases of illegal immigrants, ~50% drop in Florida fentanyl deaths, historic violent crime decline including a 126-year low murder rate, and aggressive fraud prosecutions (including a Haiti-related PPP scam). Vance framed the November 3 election as a choice between continued America First policies and a return to Biden-Harris 'failed' approaches.
Source: Forbes Breaking News
