Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Jolly is publicly asking national Democrats to pour money into his race against Republican Byron Donalds. At the same time, campaign finance disclosures show his operation has been footing the bill for stays at Ritz-Carlton hotels in at least six cities.
According to Breitbart News, the former Republican congressman turned Democrat has used donor funds for lodging at Ritz-Carlton locations in Miami, Washington, D.C., Naples, Fort Lauderdale, Boston, and New York City. Average room rates at those properties generally run from $500 to more than $1,200 during peak periods, the outlet reported.
The disclosures were posted to X in late September by user Mark Glaeser, who noted that a portion of the luxury hotel stays was covered by Florida taxpayers under the state’s campaign finance matching-funds program. Breitbart News reported on the expenditures.
‘I Need the National Democratic Party’
The spending detail emerged alongside Jolly’s own on-the-record appeal for outside help. The left-leaning Florida Phoenix covered a recent campaign event where Jolly said, “I need the national Democratic Party to come into Florida and start spending money.”
That request lands against a stark financial backdrop. As of September, Jolly reported $3.3 million in his campaign account. Donalds, by contrast, has raised $135 million across his campaign accounts through September 30, according to Breitbart News.
Despite the fundraising gap, the race has drawn attention for being tighter than many expected. A Change Research survey of likely voters conducted at the end of September gave Jolly a two-point lead, 48 percent to Donalds’ 46 percent.
A Long Political Reinvention
Jolly’s path to the Democratic nomination has been an unusual one. A former Republican congressman and lobbyist, he has worked to recast himself as a moderate in the governor’s race. Breitbart News previously reported that he wants to apologize to the world for Florida’s “culture wars” — a position that puts him at odds with the state’s Republican leadership.
He also sided with former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony Fauci during the pandemic and left Florida for Pennsylvania at the time, while criticizing Gov. Ron DeSantis, according to Breitbart News. On policy, he has backed allowing transgender males to compete in girls’ sports, said he wants to “crush” the state’s gun culture, and hopes to end Florida’s school choice programs.
The Ritz-Carlton expenditures, first surfaced by a social media user and amplified by conservative media, add a new line of attack for Republicans in a state where campaign spending — and who pays for it — can become its own issue. Florida’s matching-funds system for campaign contributions means a share of those costs ultimately falls to taxpayers, a detail Glaeser highlighted when posting the disclosures.
For now, Jolly’s campaign has not publicly addressed the hotel spending. What is clear is that the Democrat is asking his party’s national donors for a financial lifeline at the same time his own filings show a taste for high-end accommodations.
Source: www.breitbart.com — https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2026/10/05/florida-democrat-david-jolly-begging-for-money-after-ritz-carlton-hotel-habit/