Lt. Gov. Jay Collins will run with Division of Emergency Management (DEM) Director Kevin Guthrie, should he get the Republican nomination for Governor.
“I’ve seen Kevin operate when the stakes are real, and I know exactly who I want beside me when Florida faces its next challenge,” Collins said.
Collins’ campaign promoted “a top official in the Ron DeSantis administration” would be running with him, and in Guthrie he delivered, choosing someone known for a no-nonsense approach to handling disasters in the state throughout his career.
“Kevin and I didn’t meet at a fundraiser. We met on a mission. He’s spent his career running toward the problem, from 23 years in law enforcement to leading Florida through hurricanes, disasters, and some of our toughest moments,” Collins said on X, acknowledging that history.
Guthrie has spent much of his career in DEM, becoming Chief of Staff under former Gov. Rick Scott after having guided a major city and a more rural county in similar functions. The first day for Guthrie on the job was the day Hurricane Michael made landfall in North Florida, devastating the Panhandle and Big Bend region.
DeSantis tapped him to be Deputy Director in 2019 under current U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz. DeSantis then elevated Guthrie, the former Emergency Preparedness Coordinator with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and Flagler County Public Safety and Emergency Management Director, to the top job in 2021.
“When I say this ticket backs law enforcement, one of us carried a badge in Jacksonville for 23 years,” Collins said. “When we talk about protecting Florida, we mean protecting our communities, our infrastructure and our people. Kevin has spent his career doing exactly that.”
Guthrie was also key to the administration’s efforts in mass vaccinations against COVID, with the state’s “Seniors First” approach to inoculation at the center of the public health strategy. More recently, he played a central role in immigration detention efforts at “Alligator Alcatraz.”
“This office will not be ceremonial. Together, we will protect our infrastructure, protect our people, and make sure Florida is ready for whatever comes next. Kevin Guthrie is an operator ready to serve, ready to lead, and ready to continue the mission,” Collins added.
“I’m an operator at the end of the day,” Guthrie said. “I’ve spent my career solving problems, responding when people need help and getting the job done. I’m honored to join Jay in this mission and ready to serve the people of Florida.”
The choice from inside the administration comes as Collins has faced battles with Executive Office of the Governor staff, related to his seeming belief that his appointment last year by DeSantis would lend him the Governor’s political operation and capital.
Allegations swirled about how he regarded trusted DeSantis staffer Taryn Fenske as a traitor for not getting the Governor’s donors and supporters to back him months after DeSantis plucked him from the Senate. Collins denied that.
Further allegations swirled about how Second Lady Layla Collins used burner social media accounts to attack the Governor.
And then there was a text message thread with state Rep. Alex Andrade where Collins seemed to agree with the loquacious lawmaker that DeSantis is on the autism spectrum.
Also, there was the ill-advised decision to attack Republican mega-donor Ken Griffin for backing Donalds, the likely nominee. The dirty delete may have vaporized the offensive social media post, but questions swirled about the decision to blame a volunteer who somehow took control of the LG’s X account.
Collins has tried and failed to get DeSantis to endorse him, and has offered various rationalizations of why that mission failed. At one point, the LG said the Governor was leery of a “proxy war” with Donald Trump. Our sources say DeSantis wanted to see if Collins could prove himself as LG. In that context, the silence speaks volumes.
Indeed, DeSantis has expressed frustration that the candidate he most aligns with, House Speaker Paul Renner, could have been a “good Governor” but was unable to get traction in the state, with many media markets and a high financial threshold for real viability, particularly with low-information voters.
Meanwhile, DeSantis and Collins haven’t appeared together since April.
A.G. Gancarski has been the Northeast Florida correspondent for Florida Politics since 2014. His work also can be seen in the Washington Post, the New York Post, the Washington Times, and National Review, among other publications. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter: @AGGancarski
August 17, 2026 at 7:47 pm
Just in time to get his butt kicked tomorrow.
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