{"id":5894,"date":"2026-06-29T22:06:33","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T22:06:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=5894"},"modified":"2026-06-29T22:06:33","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T22:06:33","slug":"collins-challenges-fishbacks-candidacy-says-he-should-be-off-the-ballot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=5894","title":{"rendered":"Collins challenges Fishback\u2019s candidacy, says he should be off the ballot"},"content":{"rendered":"
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TALLAHASSEE \u2014 Lt. Gov. Jay Collins has filed a legal challenge arguing that James Fishback, one of his Republican gubernatorial challengers, shouldn\u2019t qualify for the ballot.<\/p>\n

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Collins is contesting in the Second Judicial Circuit in Leon County that Fishback, a conservative activist and one of 11 Republicans to qualify for the August primary, hasn\u2019t lived in Florida the required seven years, one of the qualifications necessary to run for governor outlined in the state constitution.<\/p>\n

The Orlando Sentinel reported in April that newly obtained voting records and tax returns shed serious doubt about whether Fishback, a provocative candidate with a penchant for slinging racial and anti-Semitic slurs, is qualified to run in Florida\u2019s 2026 race for governor.<\/p>\n

\u201cJames Fishback has spent months telling Florida Republicans his polls show him in first place and that he meets Florida\u2019s constitutional residency requirements,\u201d Collins said in a release. \u201cIf he\u2019s telling the truth, then this lawsuit should be the easiest thing he\u2019s done all campaign.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a post on social media, Fishback responded to the complaint and said Collins was \u201cillegally suing\u201d him and posted a photo of his 2016 Florida driver\u2019s license where his address lists Davie as the city.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis baseless lawsuit is nothing more than a desperate and illegal attempt to stop our momentum because they know we\u2019re going to win on August 18,\u201d Fishback wrote in his post on X.<\/p>\n

According to the complaint, Fishback registered to vote in Washington D.C. on Nov. 3, 2020 and received a homestead exemption for property located in D.C. for the 2026 tax year.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe integrity of the electoral process would be greatly hindered if Mr. Fishback, as a constitutionally ineligible candidate, were allowed to appear on the ballot and receive votes for the office of Governor of Florida,\u201d the lawsuit stated.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

With vote-by-mail ballots set to go out as soon as this weekend for overseas voters and next week for domestic voters, the lawsuit seeks to have the case quickly heard to remove Fishback or \u201cat a minimum, ensuring voters are notified that votes cast for Fishback will not count.<\/p>\n

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Collin\u2019s complaint further states that Fishback\u2019s candidate\u2019s oath, which he signed when he became a gubernatorial candidate, says he resides in Madison County, which if false is \u201csubject to penalties of perjury.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a clear threat of irreparable harm if injunctive relief is not granted, because a constitutionally ineligible candidate could be placed on the ballot and elected Governor, requiring an election to be overturned and a new election conducted at great expense to the State of Florida and its electorate, and could result in a constitutionally ineligible person assuming the Office of Governor,\u201d the lawsuit stated.<\/p>\n

Both Collins and Fishback are behind in terms of fundraising and polling to Congressman Bryon Donald, a Naples Republican who has been endorsed by President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In a June 11 poll conducted by Associated Industries of Florida, Donalds drew 54 percent, while Fishback was at 8 percent and Collins was at 5 percent.<\/p>\n

Fishback has been one of the more controversial candidates this cycle, accused of antisemitism and racist rhetoric in his speeches and appearances across the state.<\/p>\n

At a press conference in Tallahassee last Thursday, Fishback defended calling Donalds, who is Black, a \u201cslave\u201d to his campaign contributors.<\/p>\n

\u201cI use that word intentionally,\u201d he said. \u201cI will apologize for calling Byron Donalds a slave when he gives back the $81 million he has taken from AIPAC (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee), hedge\u2011fund billionaires and special interests who are trying to pave over the state and turn us into a concrete jungle.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cOne, it\u2019s not racially charged, but two, if it were, who cares?\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lt. Gov. 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