Originally published by Politico – https://www.politico.com/newsletters/florida-playbook/2026/06/22/ryan-elijah-bets-on-broadcast-credibility-in-cd-7-contest-00969451
By KIMBERLY LEONARD
06/22/2026 07:00 AM EDT

Former news anchor Ryan Elijah is running for Congress in Florida’s 7th District. | Courtesy Ryan Elijah

Good morning from Tallahassee and welcome to Monday.

RYAN ELIJAH spent years as a familiar face on TV news in Central Florida. Now, the former FOX 35 Orlando anchor is hoping the trust he built with viewers on “Good Day Orlando” will lead voters to tune into his GOP congressional bid.

Elijah spent much of his career traveling to Washington and hosting political programs. He was always open to running for office if the right opportunity arose, he said, and has found many of the skills he developed as a journalist carried over to the campaign trail.

“I’ve been on the other side of those interviews, and I think your messaging is as important sometimes as your position on an issue,” Elijah said. “How you communicate your position matters.”

He isn’t the first Florida candidate this cycle to trade the anchor desk for a chance at joining Congress. In Miami, former longtime CBS News anchor ELIOTT RODRIGUEZ launched a Democratic bid for Florida’s 27th District. Elijah said the two share a similar advantage: The trust they developed with viewers over decades gave them a level of name recognition many candidates don’t have.

“When you knock on a 92-year-old’s door in DeBary, and you’re a little apprehensive because she lives alone, and she welcomes you, saying that she watched you every day, and she’s excited you’re in the race — that brings a smile to your face,” he said. But he stressed he isn’t taking it for granted.

Elijah, 54, isn’t taking the same approach as figures like Republican former journalist KARI LAKE in Arizona, who made criticism of the press central to her candidacies for governor and Senate. Yet the married father of two UCF graduates said he has been a registered Republican his whole life, pointing to “conservative values” he grew up with in Indiana.

After two decades living in Florida, he said he views Central Florida’s values as “letting people decide their own success by making sure the government’s there for them, but not to restrict their business or to restrict them from how they want to raise their kids.” He additionally said he doesn’t see himself as partisan and acknowledged it’s been an adjustment to pull away from neutrality after 30 years in journalism.

“I hate to even think of myself as a politician,” he said. “I think ‘public servant’ is probably the best term. There’s not a lot of faith in politicians.”

But his theory of the case will be tested early: Elijah faces an August 18 primary that includes the President DONALD TRUMP-endorsed incumbent, GOP Rep. CORY MILLS, as well as MICHAEL DON JOHNSON, an Army veteran and former Army intelligence specialist, and businesswoman SARAH ULRICH. Mills is facing a diverse primary field as he has been under investigation by the Ethics Committee over allegations he denies of sexual misconduct and campaign finance law violation.

Elijah didn’t use the interview with Playbook to attack Mills, saying it hasn’t been a focus of his campaign. If the allegations come up at campaign events, he tells voters they’re serious and that the Ethics panel should continue its investigation. But he said he wants to give voters a choice.

“People are tired of politicians always attacking the other guy instead of telling them, ‘This is what I can do for you, this is what I offer,’” he said.

Elijah did acknowledge, however, that part of the reason he decided to run was because he was concerned the district might otherwise flip to Democrats, given their House campaign arm has targeted the seat. Democratic establishment groups have gotten behind BALE DALTON, a Navy Reserve captain and former NASA chief of staff. (Interesting tidbit: Despite Elijah’s anchor background, Dalton was never one of his interview subjects.)

Another tidbit: Elijah shared that three senators called him the day he got into the race; while he won’t say who, he gave Playbook a bit of a teaser regarding his support by revealing that “a couple names will turn some heads” when the campaign files its fundraising reports next month. Those names, he said, are people who’ve been big supporters of Trump and Gov. RON DESANTIS.