Politics & Government
The Florida Cabinet Races Are Set For November
The marquee race will likely be the contest for attorney general between James Uthmeier and José Javier Rodríguez.
August 19, 2026
The races are now set for the three Cabinet positions on the ballot in this November’s elections, and the incumbent Republicans will be favorites in all three.
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Agriculture Commissioner
Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson defeated Matt Taylor (a/k/a “Matt the Welder”) for the Republican nomination, 69%-31%, and he will be the prohibitive favorite against Democrat Joey Mendoza Atkins.
Atkins is a Miami trial attorney and former sports agent. Outside of an $8,400 loan to his campaign, he raised $1,685.
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Meanwhile, Simpson is sitting on more than $30 million in combined fundraising through his four political committees.
CFO
In the race for Florida chief financial officer, Republican incumbent Blaise Ingoglia crushed Frank William Collige, a U.S. Air Force veteran and licensed public adjuster from Baker County. The final tally was 61%-39%.
He will face former Miami-Dade County state Sen. Annette Taddeo, who defeated Earle Ford in the Democratic primary, 66%-34%.
Attorney General
There was no primary in the race for attorney general, because there were no challengers to either Republican incumbent James Uthmeier or his Democratic opponent, José Javier Rodríguez.
“JJR,” as he was known in Tallahassee, is a former Miami-Dade County state senator who narrowly lost a bitter primary re-election bid in 2020. He was later appointed to serve in the Biden administration as assistant secretary for employment and training at the U.S. Department of Labor.
Uthmeier has never faced an election. The former chief-of-staff to Ron DeSantis, he was the governor’s pick to replace Ashley Moody as attorney general in February 2025. He’s been adept at getting press coverage since he began serving, in some cases far outside of the purview of what any other Florida attorney general has ever done before.
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