Spotlight: Mark Davis, no-party candidate for Florida's 16th District
Photo: Mark Davis campaign headshot, via BallotReady
Mark Davis, a 42-year-old Air Force veteran from Parrish who says he has never been in politics, is running for Congress in Florida’s 16th District with no party affiliation. He will appear on the Nov. 3, 2026, general election ballot against Republican Sydney Gruters and Democrat Kelly Kirschner for the seat U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan is leaving after he dropped out of the race. The Florida Phoenix describes Davis as a progressive running without party affiliation and calls him the race’s “wild card.”
Who he is
Davis’s campaign website describes him as a veteran, husband, father and small-business owner who served eight years in the U.S. Air Force and spent 16 years in corporate America leading operations for a large retailer. He told WMNF that his military and corporate experience shaped his views on accountability and transparency.
On a page explaining why he is running, the campaign says Davis managed advertising and purchasing in corporate retail, in work that affected more than 336 stores across the Midwest, moved from Indiana to Wisconsin for work, and relocated to Florida about four years ago. His site says he lives in Florida with his wife, Sarah, whom it calls his high school sweetheart, and their two children. His BallotReady profile lists a bachelor’s degree from Purdue University (2005) and work as a senior buyer at Menards from 2005 to 2022, followed by procurement and category management executive roles at two pet products companies.
Davis drew national attention in January, when Newsweek reported that he claimed credit for buying the web address nazis.us and pointing it to the Department of Homeland Security’s website. A DHS spokesperson told TMZ the agency had blocked the redirect, Newsweek reported, though Newsweek said the link still led to the DHS site when it checked. At a September candidate forum, Davis called himself “just a normal dude” who has never been in politics before.
On July 28, Davis was arrested at his Parrish home and charged with obstruction without violence, according to the sheriff’s office. Sheriff’s detectives were helping the Florida Department of Children and Families serve a court order to interview his children after a hotline complaint, and deputies said Davis pushed past detectives to enter the home. He was released on a $500 bond. After the arrest, the sheriff’s office said investigators confirmed the children were safe and found no conditions in the home that raised concerns, ABC Action News reported. Davis told WWSB (ABC7) the complaint was false and was “retaliation” for his criticism of President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis. The Florida Phoenix reported that Davis says child services were called to his house because of his political beliefs, and described the charge as a misdemeanor. FMNN found no reported resolution of the charge.
The race for District 16
Buchanan, a Republican who has represented the area in Congress since 2007, according to WWSB, dropped out of the 2026 race in January, announcing he would not run for reelection in November and would leave Congress at the end of his term. The district was redrawn in 2026 and now includes all of Manatee, DeSoto and Hardee counties plus parts of Pinellas, Sarasota and Polk counties, WWSB reported. The Florida Phoenix reported that the new district takes in downtown St. Petersburg, and cited a Kirschner campaign internal poll describing it as a 13-point Republican-leaning district with 27% of voters registered with no party affiliation.
Because he has no party, Davis did not appear on the Aug. 18 primary ballot. In that primary, Gruters won the Republican nomination with 63.5% of the vote over Eddie Speir and Ed Pope, and Kirschner won a five-way Democratic primary with 43%, according to unofficial results with nearly all precincts reporting, Spectrum News reported. In August, Spectrum News reported that both the Cook Political Report and Inside Elections rated the race “solid Republican”; the Florida Phoenix reported in late September that Inside Elections had since shifted it to “Likely Republican.”
Where he stands
Accountability and transparency: Davis told WMNF that accountability is his top priority, and he pledged to keep voters updated on major votes and decisions. His campaign site calls for accountability for Trump, Elon Musk and other politicians and executives.
Economy and cost of living: His issues page cites rising rents, stagnant wages, higher insurance costs and rising property taxes, says tariffs make those problems worse and calls the “economic revival” a “mirage.” Davis told WMNF he opposes tariffs, wants to rebuild ties with trade partners and wants to lower everyday costs. His site also calls for taxing billionaires.
Health care: The campaign supports universal health care and calls the current patchwork of employer-based or profit-driven plans a failure. Davis told WMNF that Congress should back single-payer health care.
Immigration and crime: His issues page calls Trump’s talk of a “migrant invasion” and “crime wave” a fantasy, while saying crime and immigration issues are real and should be solved with “smart policies,” and it opposes militarizing streets. The Florida Phoenix reported that Davis says “Abolish ICE.”
Abortion: The campaign supports reproductive freedom, and his site calls for women’s rights and reproductive freedom to be protected in federal law.
Guns: His issues page says most Americans agree on the need for “common sense” on guns and that “nobody wants unstable people walking into schools with AR-15s.”
Democracy: His homepage says the campaign is about defending democracy and standing up to “fascism in every form,” and his site calls for checks and balances “so no one man can ever rule again.”
Veterans and working people: The homepage includes sections titled “Do Better for Our Veterans” and “Fight for Working People” but does not list specific proposals.
FMNN did not find stated positions from Davis on Social Security and Medicare, property insurance reform, housing policy or environmental and water issues in the sources we reviewed.
What he says he will do
Take a congressional salary equal to the average Manatee County teacher’s pay instead of the full $174,000, he told WMNF.
Keep voters updated on his major votes and decisions, also per WMNF.
Push for single-payer health care, common-sense gun laws, free public college and trade school, taxes on billionaires, and federal protection for reproductive freedom, according to his campaign site.
His campaign materials do not explain how these goals would be funded or what specific legislation he would introduce.
The money
Davis’s committee, Mark Davis for Florida, reported raising $51,310.68 and spending $48,106.32, leaving $3,204.36 in cash on hand as of July 29, 2026, according to the Federal Election Commission. Over the period ending the same date, Gruters reported raising $1,087,682.55 with $622,381.17 on hand, FEC records show, and Kirschner reported raising $296,506.91 with $80,737.72 on hand, according to the FEC. Davis told the Florida Phoenix he raised more than $5,000 after news of his arrest became public. Newer filings may not yet be reflected.
Who’s backing him
His campaign website lists no formal endorsements. It says some of his relatives who once supported Trump now back his campaign.
The other side
Republican Sydney Gruters, 44, of Sarasota, is a former Buchanan aide and former executive director of the New College Foundation who is married to Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters, the Florida Phoenix reported. Trump endorsed her in March, and she has campaigned on cutting taxes and regulations, border security, lowering the cost of living and supporting veterans, WWSB reported. Democrat Kelly Kirschner, 51, is a former Sarasota mayor and former Eckerd College dean, according to the Phoenix. He has focused on lowering costs, health care and retirement security, affordable housing and protecting the Gulf Coast, WWSB reported.
How to vote
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. In Manatee County, early voting runs Oct. 19 through Nov. 1, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, at any early voting center, according to the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections. In Sarasota County, the deadline to request a mail ballot be sent to you is 5 p.m. Oct. 22, according to the Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections. Voters in other parts of the district should check dates and polling places with their county: Pinellas, Polk, and DeSoto and Hardee through the Florida Division of Elections supervisor directory.
How we reported this: This profile was drafted with AI assistance from the sources linked above, and every fact was checked against those sources. FMNN Spotlight profiles are not endorsements. We invite every candidate in this race to share their positions with us. See an error? Contact us and we'll correct it.
Disclosure: Florida Man News Network publisher Joseph Jackson and Mark Davis became friends on Threads before Davis's campaign began. Jackson says both men were later doxxed by a local group that posted their home addresses online, and that both received threats. Florida Man News Network endorsed Davis in a separate opinion piece; this profile is straight news. Davis’s campaign has also paid Eat This Dessert First, a bakery Jackson owns, to cater campaign events. Disclosure: FMNN’s founder, Joseph J. Jackson, owns Eat This Dessert First. Disclosure: FMNN sells merchandise referencing Donald Trump. Our reporting follows the record regardless.
Share this story: Facebook | Threads | X | LinkedIn | WhatsApp | Email