Republican gubernatorial candidate James Fishback will remain on Florida's Aug. 18 primary ballot after a Leon County judge rejected Lt. Gov. Jay Collins' challenge to his residency qualifications. Circuit Judge David Frank ruled Monday that Collins did not present enough evidence to overcome Florida's legal presumptions favoring continued residency and candidate access to the ballot.
The final order denies Collins' request to remove Fishback, declares that the Department of State properly certified his candidacy and says Fishback shall remain qualified for the Republican nomination for governor. Collins sued Fishback in June, arguing the candidate failed to meet the Florida Constitution's requirement that a governor reside in the state for the seven years preceding the election.
During an expedited hearing last week, Collins' attorneys presented voter registration, mortgage, tax and homestead records they argued showed Fishback established legal residency in Washington, D.C., between 2019 and 2022. Fishback voted in Washington during the 2020 presidential election, filed D.C. resident income tax returns and signed mortgage paperwork describing a condominium there as his principal residence.
Frank acknowledged those records could carry consequences outside the Florida candidacy case, writing that the various election and financial filings could result in regulatory or more severe legal repercussions for Fishback under Washington, D.C. law. But the judge found they did not prove Fishback intended to abandon Florida as his permanent home. Fishback testified for several hours that he never intended to move his legal domicile from Florida.
He acknowledged signing mortgage paperwork identifying the Washington condominium as his primary residence but said he rushed through the documents without reading them closely. He also characterized his 2020 D.C. vote as an inadvertent registration during the pandemic, saying he was staying with his parents and wanted to vote for President Donald Trump.
Frank found Fishback credible on the central issue of intent. The judge also pointed to Fishback's Florida upbringing, family relationships, driver's license, vehicle registration, voting history and work with Incubate Debate, a statewide nonprofit operating student debate programs throughout Florida. Collins' attorney Mark Meuser criticized the ruling and argued the court improperly accepted Fishback's explanation that he did not understand the legal significance of his Washington filings.
Meuser did not indicate whether Collins plans to appeal the ruling. Unless an appellate court intervenes, Fishback will remain on the Aug. 18 Republican primary ballot alongside Collins, U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds and former House Speaker Paul Renner.