Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Jolly rallied supporters in Lutz on Saturday, Oct. 31, calling President Donald Trump a "lame-duck president" and turning Trump's own $5,000 hamburger joke into an attack on economic disconnect.

The Pasco County stop was part of Jolly's statewide Believe in Better Tour, first reported by Florida Politics, and came three days before Tuesday's general election against Republican Rep. Byron Donalds.

Jolly seized on a joke Trump made at an Oct. 27 rally in Corpus Christi, Texas. Trump told the crowd that the $5,000 dividend checks he has promised American adults would barely cover a hamburger and a small dessert at Mar-a-Lago, his private Florida club, according to USA Today.

At the Pasco rally, Jolly reframed the joke as an insult to struggling families.

"That is a terrible leader who suggests, when people are struggling, we should just make fun of them and tell them to come to one of the wealthiest clubs in the entire country," Jolly said, according to Florida Politics. "This is bigger than an economic crisis. This is a moral failure of our president and our leaders."

Jolly also fired back at Trump for calling him a "dog" at two Florida rallies in the past week. At an Oct. 30 Daytona Beach rally, Trump said Republicans threw Jolly "out of the party like a dog," calling him a "fricking loser," according to the Daytona Beach News-Journal. WINK News reported Trump used similar language at a Fort Myers rally.

In Pasco, Jolly brushed off the attacks.

"I don't really care what the old man says anymore," Jolly said. "I think people of goodwill are looking past the lame duck president right now, and they know he doesn't hold the answers for our future."

He drew a contrast between his message and his opponents'. "Understand our message of building a bigger table and fighting for economic opportunity versus his message of division and calling people dogs," Jolly said.

Jolly took a jab at Donalds, too. He said the 6-foot-2 Republican "took the stage and said, 'David Jolly is short.'" Jolly's response: "There's a difference between being short and being small."

Jolly, a former Republican congressman who registered as a Democrat in April 2025, faces Donalds in a race that a University of North Florida poll released Oct. 21 found within the margin of error. That poll showed Donalds at 49% and Jolly at 47% among likely voters, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.81 percentage points, as Fox 13 reported.

Donalds holds a large fundraising advantage. He has raised more than $168 million into his political committee and campaign account, compared with slightly less than $26 million for Jolly, according to Politico's Florida Playbook.

WINK News reported it reached out to the Donalds campaign for comment but did not immediately hear back.

Pasco County polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. on Nov. 3, according to Supervisor of Elections Brian E. Corley. Voters can confirm their polling location at PascoVotes.gov.