{"id":46667,"date":"2026-08-15T13:03:42","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T08:03:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=46667"},"modified":"2026-08-15T13:03:42","modified_gmt":"2026-08-15T08:03:42","slug":"stephen-a-smith-admits-florida-rep-byron-donalds-could-make-him-a-republican","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=46667","title":{"rendered":"Stephen A. Smith admits Florida Rep. Byron Donalds could make him a Republican"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F08%2F137479025.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft wp-block-nypost-editor-partner-article-links\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>ESPN host\u00a0Stephen A. Smith\u00a0said Thursday that Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., could make him a Republican, praising the <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/02\/25\/us-news\/florida-rep-byron-donalds-announces-plans-to-run-for-governor\/\">Trump-backed gubernatorial frontrunner<\/a> days before Florida Republicans choose their nominee to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd I ain\u2019t no d\u2014 Republican. But that mean if anybody could make me one, it would be him. I\u2019m just going to keep it a buck. I\u2019m just letting you know,\u201d Smith\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/Jplyc2rIztE?si=iK-EFzGhMQM9qidK\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s the real deal. Make no mistake about it. I\u2019ve seen him battling with Democrats. I\u2019ve seen him battling with people on different shows, whatever. He ain\u2019t backing up. He knows his stuff. OK? I talk to him all the time. All the time. And I ain\u2019t got nothing bad to say about him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A Donalds campaign official confirmed to Fox News Digital Friday that Smith and Donalds are friends. Campaign communications director Gates McGavick said Donalds was attracting voters across demographic groups by focusing on affordability and public safety.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cByron Donalds is drawing support from Floridians of all backgrounds because he has a clear vision to make Florida more affordable, keep Floridians safe and make sure the radical left stays out of the Sunshine State,\u201d McGavick said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>President Trump and Byron Donalds in the East Room of the White House on May 21, 2025. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cHe is building a broad coalition that puts common sense over crazy to lead Florida into the future.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One GOP source\u2019s assessment provided to Fox News Digital Friday focused on President Donald Trump\u2019s endorsement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDonalds is endorsed by POTUS, and we fully expect him to win the primary,\u201d the source said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Stephen A. Smith said Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla) could make him a Republican, praising the Trump-backed candidate. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images for Fanatics<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/jamesmadison.org\/new-poll-florida-voters-back-property-tax-relief-health-care-price-transparency-and-school-choice-while-wary-of-data-centers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">James Madison Institute poll<\/a>\u00a0released Aug. 6 placed Donalds at 49% among likely Republican primary voters, 31 points ahead of Lt. Gov. Jay Collins.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Donalds\u2019 campaign had\u00a0raised more than $90 million\u00a0while facing Collins, former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner and investor James Fishback as DeSantis withheld an endorsement of any candidate.<\/p>\n<p>Smith described himself as <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/07\/17\/media\/stephen-a-smith-rips-democratic-socialists-says-this-aint-denmark-in-defense-of-american-dream\/\">skeptical of Democrats<\/a> while pressing Donalds on Black voters\u2019 distrust of Trump and concerns about <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2024\/02\/25\/us-news\/byron-donalds-defends-trumps-gala-remarks-something-similar-that-black-people-had-to-deal-with\/\">Donalds\u2019 close alignment with the president<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Byron Donalds is the frontrunner among Florida Republicans to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cYou heard me ask that question [What have Democrats done for you?]. I ain\u2019t apologizing for it. I\u2019m very skeptical about them,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMake no mistake about it. I mean, I\u2019ve lost interest in them in a lot of different ways. I\u2019ll be the first to admit it right here on the public airwaves, but I also am trying to be fair-minded when I think about this,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>The comments continue <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/04\/01\/media\/stephen-a-smith-regrets-voting-for-kamala-harris-has-lost-faith-in-democrats\/\">Smith\u2019s increasing openness to Republican candidates<\/a>. In March,\u00a0he challenged Democrats\u00a0to earn Black votes rather than take them for granted.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Stephen A. Smith has become \u201cvery skeptical\u201d of Democrats while growing open to GOP candidates. <span class=\"credit\">Kyle Stevens\/Shutterstock<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Days later,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/media\/stephen-a-smith-rules-out-white-house-bid-says-hed-back-rubio-over-some-top-democrats\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">he told<\/a>\u00a0Sean Hannity that, despite being a Democrat, he would support Secretary of State Marco Rubio over prominent Democrats, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom and former Vice President Kamala Harris.<\/p>\n<p>Donalds answered Smith\u2019s question about skepticism among Black voters by urging them to assess politicians through policies and results rather than personal comfort or social media commentary.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s something that I acknowledge. I would challenge Black people in America. First of all, this ain\u2019t even about trust. It\u2019s about verification,\u201d Donalds said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve had people on both sides of the aisle promise Black people everything until the cows come home. But it\u2019s really about, \u2018Are you going to verify the promises and verify what the policies actually do, or are you just going to trust it because you have comfort level with a certain politician.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Fox News Digital reached out to Smith for comment but did not immediately receive a response.<\/p>\n<p>DeSantis, who was re-elected in a landslide in 2022, is barred from running for a third term. Over the past 10 years, Florida has gone from being a swing state to being dominated by Republicans at the state and national levels.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ESPN host\u00a0Stephen A. Smith\u00a0said Thursday that Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., could make him a Republican, praising the Trump-backed gubernatorial frontrunner days before Florida Republicans choose their nominee to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis. \u201cAnd I ain\u2019t no d\u2014 Republican. But that mean if anybody could make me one, it would be him. I\u2019m just going to&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":46668,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/137479025.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46667","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46667","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=46667"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46667\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/46668"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=46667"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=46667"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=46667"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}