TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) – Court proceedings began Tuesday morning surrounding a complaint against Republican gubernatorial candidate James Fishback.
The complaint, filed by candidate and current Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins, calls for a Leon County Circuit County judge to declare Fishback ineligible for governor.
And that could throw a huge wrench in things for thousands of voters who’ve already cast their primary ballots. It wasn’t immediately clear Tuesday what would happen if Fishback was tossed from the ballot.
Collins claims Fishback does not meet the Florida Constitution’s seven-year residency requirement. Fishback admitted to voting in DC, but also presented witnesses that say he’s always lived in Florida.
Despite warnings he could be criminally charged for falsely claiming to live in DC on tax and mortgage documents, Fishback insisted Florida has always been home.
Fishback took the stand on Tuesday and acknowledged he did vote in DC once, but said that doesn’t mean he didn’t live in Florida for the required seven years.
“I handed over my Florida ID and I voted for President Trump and left,” Fishback said.
During testimony, Fishback fielded questions about where he was born, what he did for fun growing up in Broward County and where he lived.
He testified he was living with his family in Florida, including living with his grandparents in Plantation.
He spoke about his organization, Incubate Debate. Fishback said he was sued by his employer for spending too much time on the organization.
“It’s a Florida organization that serves Florida schools,” Fishback said.
Separately, Fishback said an ex-girlfriend attempted to get a restraining order against him, and even she said he lived in Florida.
Mark McLaughlin was hired by the the Collins team to go through Fishback’s county voting records.
McLaughlin testified that Fishback voted in Washington DC in November 2020 and signed a deed in DC the next year.
For his part, Fishback admits he did vote in DC during the pandemic, but that it was only a temporary thing because he could not go back to his grandmother’s house because of her health during the pandemic.
“I was locked down in DC. I could not get down to Florida to vote in time. I showed up to a polling precinct with my Florida ID and I asked the worker there, “Hey, I’m from Florida. I want to vote for Trump. Can I vote here?” And she looked me in the eye and said, “Yes.’”
He also said Fishback received a property tax exemption in DC and to get that exemption, he had to be living there.
McLaughlin testified a 2019 tax return shows Fishback with an address in DC.
“You file taxes where you live,” McLaughlin said.
During cross examination, Fishback’s counsel questioned McLaughlin about how much he’d been paid for his research, which totaled about $50,000 all in.
“You were trying to find dirt?” Fishback’s counsel asked.
“I was looking for anything on behalf of the campaign,” McLaughlin said.
Attorneys asked if McLaughlin found any evidence Fishback was abandoning Florida.
“The evidence was that he was domiciled in DC,” McLaughlin said.
As for the DC home, Fishback testified his sister lives at that house and that he only recently furnished it.
Fishback: My sister lives at the house in Washington DC.
“I got a 30 year mortgage at 2.7% so it was a compelling time to buy a property,” he said. “Otherwise I’d have to get a hotel.”
Q: Have you ever worked a job in DC?
A: No
— Matt Hoffmann (@ByMattHoffmann) July 21, 2026
“In 2022, I spent only a few days there. Family friends would stay there, or my extended family,” Fishback said.
The hearing, which was expected to last two days, wrapped up Tuesday evening. The judge said he will rule by 5 p.m. next Monday.
We asked the Florida Secretary of State what would happen to the potentially thousands of votes already cast for Fishback during early voting, but we haven’t yet heard back.
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