Gwen Graham is the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor on David Jolly's gubernatorial ticket.

Graham, a former U.S. representative and daughter of the late Florida Gov. Bob Graham, filed qualifying paperwork with Jolly in Tallahassee on June 10, according to WUSF. Pasco County voters will see the race on their ballot. In a candidate questionnaire submitted to the Wesley Chapel Record, Graham said she and Jolly align on housing, healthcare, education and opposition to data centers.

Candidate information

  • Full name: Gwen Graham
  • Date of birth: Jan. 31, 1963
  • Birthplace: Miami Lakes, Florida
  • Residence: Tallahassee, Florida
  • Party: Democratic
  • Education: Bachelor's degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1984); law degree from American University Washington College of Law (1988)
  • Family: Married to Steve Hurm; mother of three children
  • Other candidates in this race: Bryan Avila (Republican), Benjiman Rojas (No Party Preference), Joe Van Vactor (No Party Preference), Juan Santana (No Party Preference), Nicole Skelly (Libertarian), Rachel Rodriguez (No Party Preference) and Ruben A. Coto (No Party Preference)

Experience and public service

Graham represented Florida's 2nd Congressional District after winning election in 2014. She defeated Republican incumbent Steve Southerland, one of only two Democrats nationally to unseat a Republican incumbent that year, according to Wikipedia.

She served until Jan. 3, 2017. In Congress, she sat on the Armed Services and Agriculture committees, according to her questionnaire. She said she worked on public education, veterans issues and the environment, and co-sponsored legislation with Sen. Bill Nelson opposing oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

Graham ran for Florida governor in 2018, finishing second in a seven-person Democratic primary with 31.3% of the vote. She lost to Andrew Gillum by 47,289 votes.

She served as assistant secretary for legislation and congressional affairs at the U.S. Department of Education from October 2021 to January 2025. Before entering politics, Graham worked as director of employee relations at Leon County Schools and as an associate attorney at Andrews & Kurth in Washington, D.C.

Graham's father, the late Bob Graham, served as Florida's governor and as a U.S. senator. He died in 2024, according to WUSF.

Graham has continued her father's "Workdays" tradition of spending full shifts working alongside Floridians at their jobs. She performed more than 50 such workdays during her campaigns for Congress and governor.

On the issues

Housing: Graham said in her questionnaire that "Florida's affordability crisis starts with housing." She said the Jolly-Graham administration would work to lower homeowner's insurance costs by creating a state catastrophic fund that removes hurricane coverage from the private market. She said the ticket supports fully funding the Sadowski Housing Trust Fund to expand workforce and affordable housing.

Public education and teacher pay: Graham said on her campaign website that "Florida pays its teachers the least in the country. That breaks my heart." She said in her questionnaire that the administration would pursue a "10 year renaissance in public education" by raising teacher pay and ensuring that all publicly funded choice schools meet the same academic and service standards.

Healthcare: Graham said in her questionnaire that she would work with legislative leaders to expand Medicaid and access to primary care through community health clinics, nonprofits and federally qualified health centers.

Congressional redistricting: Graham said she would be open to exploring an independent redistricting commission to draw political boundaries, according to NBC Miami. She said voters should have more meaningful choices in general elections rather than having races decided during party primaries.

The general election is Nov. 3.