FLORIDA — At least eight mentions of Trump were removed from the homepage of Byron Donalds' campaign website. A photograph of Donald Trump with Byron Donalds and his wife, Erika, was removed from the campaign website. Despite these removals, President Trump's endorsement of Byron Donalds remains listed in a scrolling carousel of endorsements on the campaign website. Byron Donalds' role as a 2024 Trump campaign surrogate is also mentioned on his campaign website.

Byron Donalds stated that his campaign has been working on website changes for approximately two months. He explained the rationale behind the adjustments in an interview. "These are the issues we talk about every day on the campaign trail.

For the general election, the voters of Florida want to know the policies you're going to implement to make their lives better. And so, we wanted to make sure that the website fully reflected the vision and the policies for the future of Florida, Donalds said. When asked if the website changes indicate he no longer intends to enact the Trump agenda, Byron Donalds said, No, I think that's a separate question."

Timeline

In January 2024, Byron Donalds endorsed Donald Trump over Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in the 2024 GOP primary. Last year, in January 2025, Donald Trump endorsed Byron Donalds for governor. In August 2026, Byron Donalds clinched the Republican nomination for Florida governor.

What's New

Additional reporting confirms that the word "affordability" replaced "Enact the Trump Agenda" as the top item on the issues list of Byron Donalds' campaign website.

A Republican congressional candidate in Kentucky has removed references to Donald Trump from their campaign website, similar to changes made by Byron Donalds. Byron Donalds has represented south-west Florida in Congress since 2021. A review of nearly 70,000 hours of conservative podcasts found that mentions of Donald Trump's name fell nearly 70 percent since his reelection, dropping from a peak of nearly 40 mentions per hour around the 2024 election to about 12 currently. Byron Donalds clinched the Republican nomination for Florida governor in August. Byron Donalds is United States Representative from Florida since 2021.

Why It Matters

The removal of specific references to Donald Trump from the campaign website of a major Republican gubernatorial nominee occurs as the general election approaches. While the visual prominence of the former president has decreased on the site, his endorsement remains visible, indicating a strategic adjustment rather than a complete break. This move aligns with a broader pattern observed in conservative media, where mentions of Trump's name have declined significantly since the 2024 election cycle.

Byron Donalds, who has represented south-west Florida in Congress since 2021, secured the Republican nomination in August 2026 after receiving Trump's endorsement last year. The campaign's stated goal is to focus voter attention on specific policy implementations for Florida, such as affordability and border security, rather than relying solely on national political figures. The changes suggest an effort to tailor the message to state-level concerns while maintaining the backing of the party's central figure.