Young GOP outsider takes aim at Trump-endorsed candidate in campaign launch to replace Gov. DeSantis in Florida

Florida Republican Rep. Byron Donalds' bid to succeed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) just received another challenge from a fellow Republican.

On Monday morning, James Fishback, founder and CEO of investment firm Azoria, officially launched his bid for the governor's seat in 2026.

'Congressman Byron Donalds can't be our next governor because he won't fight for Florida like Ron DeSantis has.'

In a campaign launch video posted on X, Fishback, 30, says he will "stop the H-1B scam, tell Blackstone they can't buy our homes, cancel AI Data Centers, and abolish property taxes."

"Nowadays, not all Republicans are the same. If a Republican politician supports the H-1B scam that fires our workers, he can't be our next governor," he said in the video.

Al Diaz/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

"Congressman Byron Donalds can't be our next governor because he won't fight for Florida like Ron DeSantis has."

Fishback emphasized his outsider status in the campaign video: "I'm not a politician. I'm an investor and a businessman."

Fishback promised to visit all 67 counties in Florida in the coming months because "Florida's next governor has to be someone you can see, talk to, and even debate with."

"Florida is our home; America is our birthright; and we will never let them steal it from us," Fishback's website reads.

Fishback's X profile emphasizes making Florida affordable for families.

Fishback is also the founder of the Incubate Debate, an organization that encourages middle and high school students to debate and equips teachers with a no-cost "Teacher Toolkit."

Donalds, who currently represents Florida's 19th district in the U.S. House and has received Trump's endorsement in the Florida gubernatorial race, has consistently led Democrat David Jolly, a former Republican, in early polling.

Fishback joins a very crowded gubernatorial race, with over 30 candidates having already filed.

Blaze News reached out to Fishback's campaign but did not immediately receive a response.

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Former North Carolina congressman throws his hat in the ring again — in a new state

As more candidates announce their campaigns ahead of the 2026 midterms, the race for the coveted Florida congressional seat currently occupied by Byron Donalds just got more crowded.

Madison Cawthorn, who represented North Carolina's 11th congressional district from 2021 to 2023, announced that he will be running for Donalds' congressional seat in a political comeback run in 2026.

'I'll fight to lower out-of-control insurance costs and stop crime in our streets and deport illegals.'

Citing Charlie Kirk's death in a Wednesday Instagram post as an impetus for his decision to run, Cawthorn said, "I have been juggling this decision for some time now. Once Charlie was assassinated this became no decision at all. There is only one course of action for those of us who want to live in a free, prosperous, and safe land to do: Be extremely shrewd, fearless in the face of backlash and resistance, and to stand up and fight for our country."

"I'm running for Congress to stand with President Trump, defend our conservative values, and fight to stop the radical left every single time," Cawthorn said in a YouTube video posted on Wednesday. "I'll fight to lower out-of-control insurance costs and stop crime in our streets and deport illegals."

Photo by Alexander Tamargo/Getty Images for Latino Wall Street

In an interview clip, Cawthorn expressed his intent to take up a bill championed by Donalds that would assist citizens impacted by flood insurance costs.

Cawthorn is joining a crowded field of candidates vying for Donalds' congressional seat in Florida. Donalds has announced that he will not seek re-election to Congress and will be running for governor in 2026.

According to News-Press, the Republican field of candidates includes Chris Collins, a former U.S. representative from New York; Illinois businessman Jim Oberweis; retired Marine Mike Pedersen; and president of Sun Broadcasting Jim Schwartzel. On the Democrat side, Howard Sapp is the lone candidate at this time.

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Kamala Harris Touted Alabama Mayoral Candidate as a Democratic ‘Star.’ She Lost Her Race the Next Day.

The Democratic candidate for mayor in Mobile, Ala., whom former vice president Kamala Harris touted as a "star" during an MSNBC appearance this week, lost her mayoral race to her Republican challenger just one day after Harris’s praise.

The post Kamala Harris Touted Alabama Mayoral Candidate as a Democratic ‘Star.’ She Lost Her Race the Next Day. appeared first on .

Cracker Barrel's stock sinks after controversial 'woke rebrand'

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store made headlines this week after it unveiled a drastic rebrand, though not for positive reasons.

The 55-year-old chain replaced its iconic logo, which featured a man leaning against a barrel, with a more generic design that includes only the company's name.

'"Rebrand" all of that to something more modern, something more inclusive, and something that erases those feelings, and you're "rebranding" the SOLE reason why anyone goes there to begin with.'

The logo change comes after Cracker Barrel started changing its restaurant interiors last year. The updated look replaces the classic country style with a more modern design.

The update went viral online for all the wrong reasons, with many accusing the restaurant of going "woke."

"In college, I worked at @CrackerBarrel in Tallahassee. I even gave my life to Christ in their parking lot," Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) wrote in a post on social media. "Their logo was iconic and their unique restaurants were a fixture of American culture. No one asked for this woke rebrand. It's time to Make Cracker Barrel Great Again."

Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Even Steak 'n Shake took a swipe at Cracker Barrel on social media.

"Sometimes, people want to change things just to put their own personality on things. At CB, their goal is to just delete the personality altogether. Hence, the elimination of the 'old-timer' from the signage. Heritage is what got Cracker Barrel this far, and now the CEO wants to just scrape it all away," the hamburger food chain wrote.

Though the company reportedly hired three marketing agencies to help with its redesign as part of a $700 million larger transformation plan, the public pushback appeared to negatively impact Cracker Barrel's stock.

Its shares fell nearly 15% during Thursday trading, dropping the restaurant's market value by $194.6 million, CBS News reported. Cracker Barrel regained some ground in the afternoon, with shares down roughly 13.9%.

Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images

"Shareholders should be absolutely infuriated," conservative commentator Robby Starbuck stated.

"Bottom line: Wokeness destroys businesses."

He called for Cracker Barrel's CEO to be fired.

Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck said, "Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Felss Masino said on Good Morning America this week that people are thrilled about the [restaurant's] rebrand. I think she's lying."

"Woke ideology has changed our country in countless ways, some of which we may never get back. But Cracker Barrel has always represented the one thing I think so many Americans currently crave: NOSTALGIA," Beck continued. "You go to Cracker Barrel for the rocking chairs outside, the meals that taste like grandma's home cooking, and the simple game of Chinese checkers on the table."

"'Rebrand' all of that to something more modern, something more inclusive, and something that erases those feelings, and you're 'rebranding' the SOLE reason why anyone goes there to begin with," Beck added.

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Republican turncoat announces Democrat bid for Florida governor’s seat

On Thursday, a former Republican turned Democrat in Florida announced his gubernatorial run for 2026. David Jolly, who represented the Tampa Bay area in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2014 to 2017, is looking to take term-limited Governor Ron DeSantis’ position in the heavily red state of Florida.

Asked about his turn to the Democratic Party in an interview with CBS Miami, Jolly explained that he was an independent until only recently. “I bring a different value set. Even when I was in Congress as a Republican, I supported marriage equality, gun control, climate science, campaign finance reform.”

“I struggled to exercise those values in the Republican Party,” Jolly reportedly said. “The actual registration as a Democrat wasn’t a pivot. It was a kind of formality.”

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Jolly believes that the Democratic Party is the right “vessel” to help him build a coalition in the state of Florida to address his top issue: the "affordability crisis." According to Fox News, Jolly said in a statement, "We have an affordability crisis in Florida driven by an insurance crisis that continues to worsen in the face of complete neglect by Tallahassee. We have abandoned public education, and we’ve allowed corruption to run rampant. It’s time for a change."

Jolly’s challenge to the Republican stronghold and President Donald Trump's home state comes at an uncertain time for the Democratic Party. It has been reported that there are between 1.2 million and 1.3 million more registered Republicans than Democrats in Florida.

As it stands, the Democratic primary is open, with many other potential candidates expressing wariness about the chances of turning the state blue. Trump-endorsed Florida Congressman Byron Donalds currently leads the Republican side. Rumors suggest former Representative Matt Gaetz and Florida first lady Casey DeSantis may also throw their hats in the ring.

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Young GOP outsider takes aim at Trump-endorsed candidate in campaign launch to replace Gov. DeSantis in Florida

Former North Carolina congressman throws his hat in the ring again — in a new state

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Cracker Barrel's stock sinks after controversial 'woke rebrand'

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