DELRAY BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds brought his campaign to Palm Beach County on Wednesday, meeting with hundreds of supporters in Delray Beach as he looks to build support in a county that has historically leaned Democratic.

The appearance comes a week after Donalds announced state Sen. Bryan Avila, R-Miami Springs, as his running mate in the 2026 Republican gubernatorial race.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis endorsed Donalds to become the Sunshine State’s next governor on Tuesday.

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Donalds, who is leading Democrat David Jolly in recent polls, spent much of the evening taking unscripted questions from voters during a town hall-style event. Topics ranged from insurance rates and economic issues to technology and public safety.

Speaking about insurance costs, a key concern for many Florida residents, Donalds credited reforms enacted under the DeSantis administration for recent improvements.

“The reforms that Governor DeSantis put into place that we are seeing are causing a direct impact on lowering auto insurance rates,” Donalds said. “And by the way, the same thing is occurring with property insurance rates as well. It’s starting now.”

The endorsement from DeSantis marks a notable moment in the relationship between the two Republicans, which at times has been strained. Donalds backed President Donald Trump instead of DeSantis during the 2024 Republican presidential primary, and DeSantis later questioned Donalds’ decision to run for governor while serving in Congress.

Now, with the Republican primary behind them, Donalds says the endorsement is a sign of party unity.

“Having the governor being very, very supportive is something that just helps to unify the party,” Donalds said. “I think Republicans are going to be unified heading into November. And that’s what we need to do.”

Donalds also weighed in on one of the state’s recent public safety debates: the use of Flock license plate reader cameras. He voiced support for DeSantis’ decision to remove the cameras from state roads, citing privacy concerns.

“The Fourth Amendment’s not up for debate. The privacy of our people is not up for debate,” Donalds said. “We want to empower law enforcement to have the tools that they need. But when you see some of these abuses, you’ve got to pull the plug.”

CBS12 News also asked Donalds about the Hope Florida controversy, which has faced scrutiny in Tallahassee after a grand jury found that the Hope Florida Foundation misappropriated $10 million from a Medicaid settlement. Investigators determined that some of the funds eventually flowed to political committees.

Although the grand jury found insufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges, questions remain about how the money was handled.

Donalds said that if elected governor, he would not seek to reopen the investigation.

“There have now been two independent investigations into this,” Donalds said. “First one by the Florida Legislature, now by the grand jury. Even I think it’s the Democrat running for attorney general has said there’s not a need for another investigation.”

Instead, Donalds said he supports efforts to prevent similar issues from occurring in the future.

“We now have two members of the Senate in both parties who want to do some reforms to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” he said. “I look forward to working with them on that.”

Despite holding an advantage in the polls, Donalds said he is continuing to campaign aggressively across the state. His campaign plans call for visits to all 67 Florida counties before Election Day.

According to his campaign, Donalds has raised more than $111 million so far in the race.

With just two months remaining until voters choose Florida’s next governor, Donalds’ visit to Palm Beach County highlights his effort to expand support beyond traditional Republican strongholds as the general election enters its final stretch.