The two candidates for Florida governor released dueling plans to bring down property insurance costs, putting the state's most expensive household bill at the center of the Nov. 3 election.

Republican U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds and Democrat David Jolly, a former Republican congressman, are targeting a crisis that hits Miami-Dade residents hard. The average condo insurance cost in Miami is $2,335 a year, more than double the statewide average of $1,035 and more than four times the national average of $510, according to a NerdWallet analysis of 2026 rates. Florida's average homeowners premium reached $8,292 in 2025, roughly four times what New York homeowners pay, according to a WFLX report citing an Insurify study.

Jolly's Plan Shifts Wind Risk to State Fund

Jolly wants to create a state-backed catastrophe fund that would remove hurricane and wind coverage from the private market entirely. He said the shift could cut homeowners insurance costs 60% to 70%, the Florida Phoenix reported.

The fund would need an estimated $30 billion to $40 billion, according to Jolly's campaign statements reported by FL Voice News. Jolly has said it could be financed by taxing insurance companies, fees on real estate transactions and existing tourist development taxes.

He told the Miami Herald that major insurers have already left the state, as reported by InsuranceNewsNet. Jolly pointed to Allstate, State Farm and Geico as companies no longer covering Florida properties, blaming the high cost of natural disasters and years of denying climate science.

Donalds Unveils Six-Point 'Bring Down the Bill' Plan

Donalds unveiled a six-point insurance package called "Bring Down the Bill" on Tuesday, Sept. 15, at a roundtable in Indian Rocks Beach. His plan would defend recent lawsuit reforms, reform the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, restructure My Safe Florida Home grants, create a public "Insurer Scorecard" showing pricing and claims data, cut construction costs through permitting reform and keep Citizens Property Insurance Corp. small.

His campaign said lawsuit reforms passed in 2022 and 2023 dropped insurance legal costs from $820.5 million to $57.6 million. Donalds projects his approach could reduce premiums 20% to 25%.

Campaigns Clash Over Disputed 'Hurricane Tax' Claim

The Donalds campaign is running a television ad claiming Jolly's plan would impose a $1,000 "hurricane tax" on Florida families. The campaign cites a Florida State University study as the basis for that figure.

The FSU study, published in August 2026, was not based on Jolly's proposal. It analyzed a 2024 bipartisan legislative plan that would have allowed all homeowners to buy Citizens coverage for wind damage. That study found premiums could rise 21% to 139% if the state assumed wind risk.

Jolly called the ad's claims false at a Sept. 15 press conference in St. Petersburg. "It does not include an additional $1,000 tax for homeowners," he said. "No governor is going to do that."

Donalds pushed back, saying Jolly's math does not add up. He said at the Indian Rocks Beach event that premiums along both coasts would "shoot through the roof" under a state takeover, according to Florida Politics.

Citizens Insurance Shrinks as Rates Drop Statewide

Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state's insurer of last resort, has been shrinking rapidly. Its policy count dropped from a peak of 1.41 million in October 2023 to about 274,000 by June 2026, according to the Florida Phoenix. In Southeast Florida, Citizens shed about 180,000 policies in 2025, with Miami-Dade seeing a 52% decline, Axios Miami reported.

Citizens also cut its multiperil rates by an average of 8.8% in 2026, according to a Citizens announcement. But the WFLX report projects the statewide average premium will still reach $8,458 by the end of 2026.

Donalds and Jolly will face each other in the general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3.