The group of hard-line Republicans standing firm in opposing Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s bid for speaker has coalesced around an alternative: Rep. Byron Donalds, a conservative two-term lawmaker from Florida who is considered a rising star in the GOP but is still relatively unknown nationally.
Donalds said the incident inspired him to change his life and eventually emerge from businessman to politician.
In 2021, Donalds was denied membership in the Congressional Black Caucus and insisted it was because of his conservative views.
Donalds’ wife, Erika Donalds, with whom he has three children, is also a conservative Republican and involved in state politics.
Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., center right, speaks with a colleague in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol, on Wednesday.