🏛️ DOME is The Florida Pundit’s daily briefing on the people, policies, campaigns, courts and controversies shaping Florida politics.
Florida’s 2026 primary is no longer a distant campaign.
Vote-by-mail ballots are already being returned. Attorney General James Uthmeier is investigating the supply chain for products containing potassium bromate sold in Florida. Republican candidates for governor are sharpening their attacks. And opposition to Amendment 3 is becoming increasingly organized.
Meanwhile, major election deadlines are approaching and Florida officials have paused action under the state’s new terrorist-designation law.
Here’s what is moving Florida politics this morning.
🗳️ Election Watch: Florida primary ballots are already coming back
The first vote-by-mail ballots for Florida’s 2026 primary have already been returned, marking the beginning of actual voting in races for governor, U.S. Senate, Congress and offices across the state.
As of Monday afternoon, 477 mail ballots had been returned, while more than 1.1 million Florida voters had requested vote-by-mail ballots for the August primary, according to state election data reported by Florida Phoenix and WLRN.
Florida supervisors of elections are completing the domestic vote-by-mail mailing window, which runs through Thursday.
The next major deadline arrives Monday, July 20.
That is the deadline for Floridians to register to vote before the Aug. 18 primary. It is also the party-change deadline for voters who want to participate in a partisan primary. Florida is a closed-primary state, meaning voters generally must be registered with a political party to vote in that party’s primary. Florida’s mandatory early voting period is Aug. 8 through Aug. 15, though counties may offer additional days.
WHY IT MATTERS
The campaign phase is now colliding with the voting phase.
Candidates are still fighting over debates, endorsements and electability, but some Floridians have already made their choices.
READ MORE
Follow candidate coverage, key races and voting deadlines in The Florida Pundit’s Florida Elections 2026 guide.
🥖 Under Investigation: Uthmeier probes potassium bromate in Florida food supply
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has opened an investigation into the supply chain for products containing potassium bromate sold in Florida, issuing a civil subpoena to General Mills.
The investigation is being conducted under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and focuses on the distribution of bromated products, disclosures to purchasers and research concerning potential health effects.
“This investigation is about protecting Florida families and providing transparency to our consumers,” Uthmeier said.
The subpoena seeks records identifying General Mills products containing potassium bromate sold to Florida purchasers and the company’s top purchasers in the state from 2023 through 2026.
Investigators are also seeking information concerning disclosures made to purchasers and company research on the use of potassium bromate and its potential effects on human safety.
The subpoena specifically seeks records concerning sales of identified products to Florida schools serving students from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The state’s investigation has not publicly identified a specific school or school district as having purchased the products.
Potassium bromate is used in certain flour and bakery applications as a flour improver and dough conditioner.
The issuance of a civil subpoena is an investigative step and does not establish wrongdoing by General Mills.
WHY IT MATTERS
The investigation puts part of Florida’s food supply chain under new scrutiny and raises questions about what commercial purchasers were told about products containing potassium bromate.
The inclusion of potential sales to Florida schools also gives the investigation a broader public-interest dimension.
READ MORE
The Florida Pundit’s full report: Florida AG James Uthmeier Subpoenas General Mills in Potassium Bromate Investigation.
🏛️ Campaign Watch: Donalds’ Republican rivals sharpen their attacks
The Republican race for governor is becoming increasingly confrontational as U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds continues to lead the field in public polling.
Former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner is now openly questioning President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Donalds.
Renner argues Trump did not conduct sufficient “due diligence” before backing the congressman and says the president might have reconsidered if he had a fuller picture of Donalds’ record.
“If he knew what I knew, I don’t think he would ever have made that endorsement,” Renner said.
The Donalds campaign’s response to Renner’s criticism was considerably shorter.
“Who?”
Lt. Gov. Jay Collins is also sharpening his electability argument.
Collins recently argued that some candidates in the Republican field may be capable of winning a primary but losing a general election, while others may be unable to win either.
He did not publicly assign Donalds, Renner or James Fishback to those categories.
Donalds, meanwhile, has shown little interest in elevating his lower-polling opponents.
During a recent campaign stop in Hialeah, Donalds defended his decision not to participate in a debate, pointing to his polling advantage and describing his rivals as candidates “grasping at straws.”
THE DOME VIEW
Donalds’ rivals are no longer simply introducing themselves to Republican voters.
They are increasingly making a more direct argument: that the front-runner should not automatically become the nominee.
The problem for Renner, Collins and Fishback is that public polling has yet to show those attacks fundamentally changing the race.
READ MORE
Read The Florida Pundit’s Jay Collins 2026 candidate profile, our report on Paul Renner questioning Trump’s Donalds endorsement, and Donalds’ explanation for declining to debate his Republican rivals.
🏠 Under the Dome: Amendment 3 opposition organizes as ‘Yes’ campaign remains absent
The political fight over Florida’s Amendment 3 property tax proposal is becoming increasingly one-sided organizationally.
Three groups have mobilized against the proposed constitutional amendment, while no comparable statewide campaign supporting the measure has emerged. Recent reporting also found Florida’s major business organizations largely quiet on the proposal.
Floridians for Shared Prosperity has launched its “Save Our Services — No on 3” campaign, joining Vote No on 3 and 3 Degrees Florida in opposing the measure.
Amendment 3 would increase the homestead tax exemption for non-school property taxes to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028. The proposal includes additional property-tax and spending provisions.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has said he supports the measure and plans to vote for it but will not formally campaign for the Legislature’s final proposal.
Opponents are also challenging the amendment in court.
WHY IT MATTERS
Constitutional amendments need at least 60% voter approval in Florida.
That means an opposition campaign does not need to persuade a majority of voters to reject Amendment 3. It only needs to hold support below the constitutional threshold.
The absence of a visible statewide “Yes on 3” campaign therefore matters.
Read The Florida Pundit’s full report on growing opposition to Florida Amendment 3.
⚖️ Courts & Legal Affairs: Florida pauses CAIR designation process
Florida officials have paused immediate action to designate the Council on American-Islamic Relations as a domestic terrorist organization under a new state law.
The law took effect July 14, but Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement did not immediately complete the designation process.
A DeSantis administration spokesperson said officials must compile information and complete additional review before making a designation. The delay comes amid ongoing litigation over Florida’s actions involving CAIR.
The governor previously announced plans to use the new law against CAIR and other organizations.
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING
Whether Florida formally completes the designation process — and how quickly the issue returns to federal court if it does.
The case could become an early test of the procedures and authority created by Florida’s new law.
📅 Political Calendar: Florida’s deadlines are getting real
July 16 — Final day in the domestic vote-by-mail ballot mailing window.
July 20 — Deadline to register to vote or change party affiliation for the 2026 primary.
July 21 — Two-day hearing begins in the lawsuit challenging James Fishback’s eligibility to run for Florida governor.
Aug. 6 — Deadline to request that a primary vote-by-mail ballot be mailed.
Aug. 8–15 — Mandatory early voting period.
Aug. 18 — Florida primary election.
The Florida Division of Elections lists July 20 as the registration deadline and Aug. 8–15 as the mandatory early voting period for the Aug. 18 primary.
VOTER TOOLKIT
REGISTER TO VOTE | FIND YOUR PRECINCT | FIND YOUR LEGISLATORS | U.S. HOUSE | U.S. SENATE
👀 What We’re Watching
The Fishback hearing
The July 21 hearing over James Fishback’s eligibility to run for governor is less than a week away.
The legal dispute centers on Florida’s constitutional residency requirement for gubernatorial candidates.
The debate battle
Will continued pressure from Collins, Renner and Fishback change the Republican debate dynamic?
So far, Donalds appears unwilling to give his rivals the confrontation they want.
Amendment 3 money
Three opposition efforts are organizing against the property tax amendment.
DOME is watching for the emergence of a serious statewide “Yes” campaign — and the money behind it.
The Uthmeier investigation
The Attorney General’s subpoena seeks records on bromated products sold in Florida, major purchasers and potential sales to schools.
The next question is what General Mills’ records show.
Returned ballots
With vote-by-mail ballots already coming back, campaign mistakes now carry a different cost.
Some votes can no longer be persuaded.
The Bottom Line
Florida’s 2026 election cycle has crossed an important threshold.
Candidates are still campaigning, attacking one another and arguing about debates — but voters have begun returning ballots.
At the same time, Uthmeier’s food-supply investigation has opened a new consumer protection front, Amendment 3 opponents are organizing ahead of November and Florida’s new terrorist-designation law is already facing procedural and legal questions.
The political clock is moving faster.
For Donalds’ Republican rivals, the window to reshape the governor’s race is narrowing. For Amendment 3 supporters, organized opposition is building before a comparable “Yes” campaign has taken shape.
And with major election deadlines arriving over the next several days, Florida politics is moving from campaign season into voting season.
Related Coverage
- Florida AG James Uthmeier Subpoenas General Mills in Potassium Bromate Investigation
- Paul Renner Says Trump ‘Didn’t Do Due Diligence’ Before Endorsing Byron Donalds
- Who Is Jay Collins? Florida Lieutenant Governor and 2026 Governor Candidate
- Amendment 3 Opposition Grows as ‘Yes’ Campaign Remains Nowhere in Sight
