Byron Donalds Says He’ll Address Death Penalty on ‘Case-by-Case’ Basis
Byron Donalds, Florida’s governor-elect, said during a news conference in Hollywood that he will evaluate each death penalty case individually upon taking office in January. He was asked by a Phoenix reporter whether he would continue the pace of signing death warrants set by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who signed 19 in 2025 and 22 so far this year. Donalds responded, “For us, we’re just going to evaluate each case as it comes. I’m not trying to set a quota, or anything like that. We’re going to evaluate them on an individual basis, because you are talking about following through on a court decision for somebody who’s on death row. And so, we’ll just do that on a case-by-case basis. That’s the way that I’m going to proceed with that topic.”
Donalds’ comments came after he was asked to consider halting executions after he takes office. Requests came from three exonerated death row inmates who during a press conference in Tallahassee Thursday called on the governor-elect to halt executions and review the state’s death penalty laws. Those three men are among 30 condemned prisoners exonerated in Florida since the death penalty was reintroduced in 1976. Also, on Wednesday, the Rev. Dr. Jeff Hood, spiritual adviser to two of the death row inmates in Florida scheduled for execution in the next month, urged Donalds to commit to a six-month moratorium on executions. “We’re asking for this to be a moment in which the state takes the opportunity to investigate what 40 executions in multiple years has cost,” Hood said during a remote press conference. “We are asking the governor to lead the way in taking the opportunity to see what pieces are not in place to support those who are being pushed and forced to carry these executions out. We should be knowledgeable about how much these executions are costing.”
Public approval for the death penalty for convicted murders in the United States has now dropped to 49%, the first time support has been below the majority level since 1971, according to a recent Gallup Poll. Gallup conducted the survey Oct. 1 -19, beginning the day after the failed execution attempt of Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike. Twenty-seven states still enforce the death penalty. However, four of them (Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and California), have executive holds on executions.
Liberty and accountability
Decisions involving state executions are among the gravest uses of government power and require more than a pledge to consider cases individually. Libertarian concerns include wrongful convictions, access to competent legal representation, disclosure of exculpatory evidence, and the risk of arbitrary application. Any governor reviewing death warrants should explain the statutory limits of clemency and the procedures used to ensure full due process. Irreversible punishment requires exceptional transparency and restraint.