Veteran journalists Michael Williams and Brian Crowley break down Florida's 2026 governor's race — Byron Donalds' commanding lead and a Fox News comment that could haunt him, Jay Collins' DeSantis problem, Paul Renner's uphill climb, and whether Democrats Jerry Demings or David Jolly can thread the needle in a red state. Plus: the U.S. Senate race, Ashley Moody vs. Alex Vindman, the stalled state budget, the property tax debate that went nowhere, and Brian's wild-card scenario — what happens if Ron DeSantis lands a cabinet seat?`

Who's going to cover the cities, school boards, and water plants that Florida's shrinking newsrooms have left behind?

CB Hanif spent more than two decades at the Palm Beach Post — as editorial page editor, ombudsman, and columnist — before spending the last 11 years teaching multimedia journalism at Inlet Grove Community High School in Riviera Beach. His students cover real government meetings, write for the Stet News Community Voices team, and get paid for their work.

One of those students is Mikala Graham, an 11th grader who caught the journalism bug and started covering Riviera Beach city government — including a water plant issue that directly affects her neighborhood. She shows up, takes notes, asks questions, and understands why it matters that someone from the community is in the room.

Veteran broadcast journalist Michael Williams and Florida political analyst Brian Crowley explore what's lost when local reporting disappears, why TikTok isn't the enemy of good journalism, and what it looks like when the next generation actually gets it.

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🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday at 4 PM on YouTube and 5 AM on all major audio podcast platforms.

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Florida's congressional map was redrawn in a matter of hours — with almost no public input — and Governor Ron DeSantis signed it into law before most voters knew the special session had even begun. The new map shifts Florida's House delegation from a 20-8 Republican advantage to a projected 24-4 split, reshaping districts across South Florida, Tampa, and Central Florida.

Veteran broadcast journalist Michael Williams and Florida political analyst Brian Crowley break it all down: which incumbents are most vulnerable, what happens to Jared Moskowitz, Lois Frankel, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and the shattered CD 20, and whether a redrawn map can hold up when Florida voters are paying $5 a gallon for gas and can't afford housing.

Courts will challenge this. The pocketbook will challenge this even harder.

New episodes drop every Tuesday at 5am. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen.

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/top-of-mind-florida/id1818339119 RSS: https://rss.com/podcasts/top-of-mind-florida/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TopOfMindFlorida