Madison Cawthorn (R), Chris Collins (R), Ola Hawatmeh (R), Catalina Lauf (R), Jim Oberweis (R), Jim Schwartzel (R), and six other candidates are running in the Republican primary for Florida's 19th Congressional District on August 18, 2026. As of June 2026, Cawthorn, Collins, Hawatmeh, Lauf, Oberweis, and Schwartzel led in fundraising, endorsements, and local media attention.
Incumbent Byron Donalds (R) is running for governor rather than seeking re-election. Florida Politics' Jacob Ogles said, "The winner of the Republican Primary in August will be a heavy favorite to win the Republican-heavy district. More than 69% of voters in the district, under a new map enacted by Gov. Ron DeSantis, voted for Republican Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election while just 34% backed Democrat Kamala Harris." Ogles quoted Victory Insights pollster Ben Galbraith as saying in June 2026, "Schwartzel and Oberweis currently lead the pack, just barely breaking into the double digits. No other candidates scored higher than the mid-single digits. 54% of voters are undecided. I’ll spare you further details — this race is wide open."
Cawthorn was elected to represent North Carolina's 11th Congressional District in 2020. He lost the 2022 Republican primary to Chuck Edwards (R). In a campaign ad, Cawthorn said, "When I was in Washington, I warned you about a deep culture of corruption. People laughed. They mocked me. They said I was wrong. ... But today, I stand completely vindicated. I've never asked the establishment permission to tell the truth. I work only for you."
Collins served as Erie County Executive in New York from 2007 to 2011 and represented New York's 27th Congressional District from 2013 until his resignation in October 2019 after being charged with insider trading. President Donald Trump (R) pardoned Collins in December 2020. Collins' campaign website said, "In 2016, Chris Collins was the first Member of Congress to endorse Donald Trump for President ... Chris Collins helped President Trump start the fight in 2016. Now he's running to help him finish it."
Hawatmeh is a businesswoman and former senior policy advisor to Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.). Hawatmeh unsuccessfully ran to represent New York's 19th Congressional District in 2020. Hawatmeh's campaign website says she is "running to be a conservative fighter who gets things done for FL-19. Ola will stay focused on Florida first, hold Washington accountable, and keep the mission simple: deliver for Southwest Florida and protect taxpayers."
Lauf is the founder of the Defense of Freedom PAC and co-founder of Begin Health. She ran unsuccessfully for Illinois' 14th Congressional District in 2020 and for Illinois' 11th Congressional District in 2022. Her campaign website said, "She is running to bring a new generation of servant leadership to Congress ... Unlike career politicians and recycled candidates, Catalina’s campaign is built on service, not self-interest."
Oberweis is the founder of Oberweis Asset Management. He served in the Illinois Senate from 2013 to 2021 and ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in Illinois in 2002, 2004, and 2014, for governor of Illinois in 2006, and for Illinois' 14th Congressional District in 2008 and 2020. Oberweis' campaign website said, "[M]y background in economics, finance and money management makes me highly qualified to help in the effort to root out waste, fraud and abuse and to bring fiscal sanity back to our federal budget."
Schwartzel is the owner and operator of 92.5 FOX News, a conservative talk radio station. Schwartzel's campaign website says he is "not a career politician with ambitions for higher office—like President Trump, he’s a straight-talking outsider who’s fed up with the D.C. swamp ignoring real Americans."
Also running in the primary are Greg Bukowski (R), John Fratto (R), Mike Pedersen (R), Linda Sawyer (R), Louis Shenker (R), and John Strand (R).
As of June 2026, major election forecasters rated the general election Solid/Safe Republican.
