This piece is part of a series of articles examining where 2026 Southeastern candidates for state and federal offices stand on key energy and climate issues, like data centers and energy costs.
Note: The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy does not support or oppose candidates or political parties. Links to reports, candidate websites, and outside sources are provided as citizen education tools.
In this blog post, we examine the policies and positions of Byron Donalds, the Republican Party candidate running for Governor of Florida. Also in this series, we profile Democratic candidate David Jolly. Election Day is November 3.
Byron Donalds is a former U.S. Congressman who represented Florida’s 19th Congressional District. Prior to serving in Congress, he served in the Florida House of Representatives from the 80th district. He graduated from Florida State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in finance and marketing.
Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency
In an article published in the Fort Myers News-Press in 2023, Byron Donalds writes, “Many ‘green energy’ promoters fixate on an energy grid centered around wind and solar to ‘reduce fossil fuel consumption’—but such an energy future is a dishonest fantasy.” He goes on to say, “Today, the United States theoretically has enough wind and solar capacity to power an electric grid, and sufficient battery technology to store power for when the wind isn’t blowing and when the sun isn’t shining. Yet, there are many considerations that complicate this wishful energy opportunity and must be explored further in green alternative energy discussions.” He concludes by saying, “In sum, I’m not opposed to wind turbines and solar panels, but if we seriously want an affordable, reliable, secure ‘green energy’ grid, we cannot rely on the dishonest fantasy of utilizing spiky intermittent energy sources like wind and solar. Instead, we must embrace nuclear power and include nuclear in future green alternative energy discussions.”
Regarding energy efficiency, in 2024, Donalds voted for H.R.6192, the Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act, which would effectively block the Department of Energy from setting appliance efficiency standards that reduce energy use.
Climate Change
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) has consistently dismissed the connection between climate change and human actions as well as between climate change and extreme weather. In the summer of 2023, during broiling heat waves, Donalds was asked by reporters if he believed in the underlying correlation between the ongoing heat waves and climate change; he replied, “No, I don’t.”
During a hearing before the House Committee on Financial Services, titled “Protecting Investor Interests: Examining Environmental and Social Policy in Financial Regulation,” on July 12, 2023, Donalds stated, “I know a comment was made about belief in anthropologic global warming as it used to be called, or climate change, or whatever you want to say it is. No, I actually don’t agree with that statement. I don’t think that ‘science’ is settled. I think it’s interesting in 2023 that people talk about settled science unless you’re talking about physics and the laws of gravity and other things that are tried and true over many, many decades. But no, the science is not settled on that.”
Donalds has introduced legislation to allow Wall Street firms to exclude environmental, social, or political (ESG) shareholder proposals. And in 2021, he voted against the “Climate Risk Disclosure Act” that would require companies to disclose risks from climate change as part of a suite of corporate transparency bills, calling the legislation “liberal fascism.”
According to the Center for American Progress, which tracks fossil fuel contributions to Congress members, Donalds received $150,071 from anti-climate money during his tenure in Congress.
Electric Transportation
Donalds has criticized policies to transition the federal postal fleet to electric vehicles, arguing they “make no sense at all”.
Energy Justice
Donalds has engaged in localized, consumer-focused relief. He partnered with Florida Democrats on a bipartisan initiative to demand that Florida receive its fair share of Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funding to assist at-risk seniors and low-income families facing high utility costs.
Energy Affordability
State regulators set a permitted return on equity (RoE) for the biggest utility companies, which is a guaranteed profit they are allowed to earn from ratepayers. Utilities make money building new infrastructure because that guaranteed profit is baked into new building costs. To address accountability and affordability, David Jolly, Donald’s opponent, has proposed a cap on RoE. On the campaign trail at a press conference in Tampa, Donalds dismissed the idea, saying, “One thing we know about when a government decides to institute caps, what you actually end up getting is worse service, because what ends up happening is you don’t have the capital that goes into invest into the future of your electric grid. So, a cap might sound good politically, but it’s a terrible solution.”
Tracking from the nonprofit group CLEO Institute found that Donalds has received $1.79 million in campaign contributions from Florida’s major power utilities while in office. He is the state’s second-highest recipient.
High-Risk Energy: Nuclear, Coal, Methane Gas
Byron Donald’s congressional record makes him one of the most pro-nuclear advocates in Congress, and he promotes nuclear energy as the primary driver for lowering utility bills, ensuring baseload reliability, and strengthening national security.
In September 2025, Donalds voted in favor of the Guaranteeing Reliability through the Interconnection of Dispatchable (GRID) Power Act. The bill requires the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to prioritize dispatchable power projects (fossil fuel projects) over intermittent power projects (renewable energy projects).
Data Centers
Donalds has received $5 million dollars in support from data center developers and is making the case that Florida needs AI and data center infrastructure to stay competitive and power economic growth. He has also stated that these facilities need to be in Florida, and has advocated for “small modular nuclear reactors and micronuclear reactors” and “closed-loop water filtration systems” as part of the builds. He was recently quoted as saying, “There ain’t no bans coming” in reference to opponents who want to stop AI data centers.
Voter Information
Election Day is November 3. Here are important dates and deadlines to consider:
- Oct. 5, 2026: Voter registration deadline
- Oct. 22, 2026: Absentee ballot request deadline
- Early voting varies by county. Early voting was approved by the Florida Legislature in 2004. Statewide, early voting is currently held a minimum of the 10th day through the 3rd day prior to any federal, state or county election, with the Supervisor of Elections having the option to provide early voting on the 15th, 14th, 13th, 12th, 11th and 2nd days prior to the election.
- Nov. 3, 2024: General Election Day
- Nov. 3, 2026: Absentee ballot return deadline
- Nov. 3, 2026: Absentee ballot return deadline for military and overseas citizen voters
For more information about being a Florida voter, including registering, finding your polling place, and requesting an absentee ballot, visit dos.fl.gov/elections.
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