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Byron Donalds
Byron Lowell Donalds (born October 28, 1978) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Florida's 19th congressional district since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 to 2020. His congressional district includes much of Southwest Florida.
Born and raised in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, Donalds attended Florida A&M University before earning a Bachelor of Science degree in finance and marketing from Florida State University in 2002. Prior to entering politics, Donalds worked in the finance, insurance, and banking industries. Situated in the conservative or MAGA wing of the Republican Party, Donalds was a member of the Tea Party movement and unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. He represented the 80th district in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 to 2020.
Donalds was elected to Congress in 2020, defeating Democratic nominee Cindy Banyai. In the January 2023 Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives election, Donalds was nominated for the speakership in the fourth through 11th rounds of voting. Several months later, he was again a candidate for the October 2023 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election. In February of 2024, Donald Trump said that Donalds was among those he was considering as a running mate, and media outlets subsequently listed him as a potential vice-presidential nominee.
In February 2025, Donalds announced his candidacy for governor of Florida in the 2026 election. Days earlier, Trump had posted on Truth Social that Donalds would have his "Complete and Total Endorsement."
Donalds was born and raised in the Crown Heights neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. One of three children, he was raised by his single mother. In 1996, Donalds graduated from Nazareth Regional High School in East Flatbush. Donalds is of Jamaican and Panamanian heritage.
In 1997, Donalds was charged with marijuana possession, but the charges were dropped as part of a pre-trial diversion program, and he was fined $150 (equivalent to $300 in 2025). In 2000, he pleaded no contest to a felony theft charge for allegedly attempting to defraud a bank (by depositing a bad check), but his record was later sealed and expunged. According to an attorney consulted by the fact-checking site PolitiFact, "Donalds would not have been able to get his record expunged if the state considered him a convicted felon."
Donalds attended Florida A&M University, subsequently transferring to Florida State University. In 2002, he graduated from FSU with a Bachelor of Science degree in finance and marketing.
Donalds began his professional career in 2003 as a credit analyst at TIB Bank. He was promoted to senior credit analyst in 2004, and later promoted to commercial credit manager, assistant vice president, and credit manager. Donalds left TIB Bank in 2007 and took a position as a portfolio manager at CMG Surety LLC. In 2015, he joined Wells Fargo Advisors as a Financial Advisor.
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Byron Donalds
Byron Lowell Donalds (born October 28, 1978) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Florida's 19th congressional district since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 to 2020. His congressional district includes much of Southwest Florida.
Born and raised in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, Donalds attended Florida A&M University before earning a Bachelor of Science degree in finance and marketing from Florida State University in 2002. Prior to entering politics, Donalds worked in the finance, insurance, and banking industries. Situated in the conservative or MAGA wing of the Republican Party, Donalds was a member of the Tea Party movement and unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. He represented the 80th district in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 to 2020.
Donalds was elected to Congress in 2020, defeating Democratic nominee Cindy Banyai. In the January 2023 Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives election, Donalds was nominated for the speakership in the fourth through 11th rounds of voting. Several months later, he was again a candidate for the October 2023 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election. In February of 2024, Donald Trump said that Donalds was among those he was considering as a running mate, and media outlets subsequently listed him as a potential vice-presidential nominee.
In February 2025, Donalds announced his candidacy for governor of Florida in the 2026 election. Days earlier, Trump had posted on Truth Social that Donalds would have his "Complete and Total Endorsement."
Donalds was born and raised in the Crown Heights neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. One of three children, he was raised by his single mother. In 1996, Donalds graduated from Nazareth Regional High School in East Flatbush. Donalds is of Jamaican and Panamanian heritage.
In 1997, Donalds was charged with marijuana possession, but the charges were dropped as part of a pre-trial diversion program, and he was fined $150 (equivalent to $300 in 2025). In 2000, he pleaded no contest to a felony theft charge for allegedly attempting to defraud a bank (by depositing a bad check), but his record was later sealed and expunged. According to an attorney consulted by the fact-checking site PolitiFact, "Donalds would not have been able to get his record expunged if the state considered him a convicted felon."
Donalds attended Florida A&M University, subsequently transferring to Florida State University. In 2002, he graduated from FSU with a Bachelor of Science degree in finance and marketing.
Donalds began his professional career in 2003 as a credit analyst at TIB Bank. He was promoted to senior credit analyst in 2004, and later promoted to commercial credit manager, assistant vice president, and credit manager. Donalds left TIB Bank in 2007 and took a position as a portfolio manager at CMG Surety LLC. In 2015, he joined Wells Fargo Advisors as a Financial Advisor.