Byron Donalds' Election Victory Prompts Controversial On-Air Comment About Black Conservatives
Andrew Powell · Nov 5, 2026 · 2 min read
MS NOW host Symone Sanders Townsend acknowledged Byron Donalds’ historic election as Florida’s first Black governor before questioning whether his political positions made him a representative figure for other Black Americans.
According to Fox News, during election coverage Tuesday, Sanders Townsend invoked a familiar saying to make her point about the Republican’s victory over Democrat David Jolly.
“I will say, though, you know, as they say in my community, all kinfolk ain’t skinfolk,” she said.
She went on to argue that Donalds’ administration would follow the same political course as outgoing Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“And what I say and what I mean by that is Byron Donalds is making history, but he is going to continue the political direction that Ron DeSantis is going to continue in Florida,” Sanders Townsend said.
She had earlier described Donalds’ victory as historic, noting that Florida had never before elected a Black governor. Donalds defeated Jolly in a close race and will succeed DeSantis, who was barred from seeking another consecutive term.
The comment drew criticism from Tim Graham, director of media analysis at the Media Research Center and executive editor of NewsBusters.
Graham argued that Sanders Townsend was suggesting Black Americans who support conservative policies are somehow betraying their racial identity.
“Symone Sanders is trying to argue that Blackness and conservatism are polar opposites or that being a Black conservative is being a traitor to your race,” Graham told Fox News Digital.
He also said her remarks implied that DeSantis' policies were anti-Black and that Donalds would carry them forward. Graham compared the criticism to the treatment of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas during his contentious 1991 confirmation hearings, when Thomas described the proceedings as a “high-tech lynching.”
The exchange also comes after Donalds faced criticism from Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas over his marriage to a White woman. Her comments resurfaced in 2025, prompting Donalds to defend his wife during an appearance on “The Joe Pags Show.”
“Don’t talk about my wife. Keep my wife out of this. It ain’t got nothing to do with her,” he said.
Donalds' election marks a milestone for Florida, though Sanders Townsend's remarks shifted attention from the historic nature of the result to the political divisions surrounding his conservative agenda.