Race Analysis: Florida AG Commissioner Republican Primary

Florida Republicans will choose their party’s nominee for Florida Commissioner of Agriculture in the Aug. 18 Primary Election, with “Matt The Welder” (Matt Taylor) and incumbent Commissioner Wilton Simpson competing for the nomination.

The winner of the primary will advance to the Nov. 3 General Election to face the Democratic nominee.

The Florida Commissioner of Agriculture is a statewide elected official who leads the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) and serves on the four-member Florida Executive Cabinet alongside the Governor, Attorney General, and Chief Financial Officer. While the title may lead one to assume the office is farming-focused, the office actually oversees a wide range of programs that affect everyday Floridians, including food safety inspections, consumer protection, state forests, wildfire response, concealed weapons licensing, and the promotion of Florida's agricultural industry.

As one of Florida’s largest agencies, FDACS oversees multiple divisions and offices, including (but not limited to) the Agricultural Environmental Service, which regulates pesticides, fertilizers, feed, seed, and mosquito programs, the Florida Forest Service, which manages and protects state forest resources and fights wildfires, the Division of Food Safety, the Division of Plant Industry which is responsible for managing invasive plants and protecting honey bees from pests and disease, and the Division of Consumer Services with regulates various businesses and handles consumer complaints. Click here for a full list of offices and divisions overseen by FDACS.

The commissioner's role also includes making decisions on major statewide issues alongside the Governor and the other Cabinet officers.

Republican Wilton Simpson



Simpson, a fifth-generation Floridian, was elected as Florida Commissioner of Agriculture in 2022. For more than four decades, Simpson has worked in commercial agriculture within his family’s large-scale egg production operation and as a businessman in his family’s commercial environmental abatement company, Simpson Environmental Services, LLC (SES). The agricultural and industrial entrepreneur has also found financial success in certain strategic land investments over his career.

According to his official bio, he lives in Pasco County with his wife Kathy, and the couple has two adult children and two grandchildren.

Before he was elected Florida Commissioner of Agriculture, Simpson served from 2012 to 2022 as a member of the Florida Senate and was elected Senate President for the 2020-2022 term. As Florida Senate President, Simpson championed major agricultural and conservation policies, including the Right to Farm Act, the expansion of Florida’s Greenbelt tax-classification laws, and the landmark Florida Wildlife Corridor Act.

Simpson’s campaign website highlights his first-term record as various accomplishments listed under the following sub-menu titles: Agriculture, Free Florida, Public Safety, Families, Veterans, Economic Freedom, Environment, and Education. The campaign also highlights conservative policy priorities championed by Simpson, including support for law enforcement, Second Amendment rights, border security, and legislation affecting lab-grown meat, fluoride in drinking water, and foreign ownership of Florida land.

His re-election platform is centered on his first-term record, with continued focus on supporting agriculture within the state, reducing regulation, investing in wildfire prevention and land conservation, strengthening consumer protection programs, and expanding public safety initiatives.

As of the most recent campaign finance reporting, Simpson has shown strength in fundraising, far surpassing all other candidates in the race. His campaign has reported raising approximately $936,000 and reported $363,332 in expenditures, leaving a significant portion of funds yet available. 

Of the 592 reported contributions, the vast majority range from $1,000 to the maximum $3,000. These large donations account for 59.29% of all separate contributions, which include 134 donations of $1,000, 27 of $2,000, and 190 at the maximum $3,000 limit.

Campaign finance records also reflect contributions consistent with Simpson's status as a statewide elected incumbent and former President of the Florida Senate, with more than three dozen political committees (PACs) showing support and numerous businesses and individuals contributing. A significant majority, over 90% of his reported fundraising, came from entities reporting a Florida address. 

The Friends of Wilton Simpson political committee has reported raising more than $21 million in monetary contributions and another $174,616 in in-kind contributions since its establishment in 2021. As of the most recent reporting, the political committee had reported just under $15 million in expenditures.

Republican Matt the Welder (Matt Taylor)



Born in Clearwater, Florida, Matt the Welder earned his high school diploma from Sickles High School and graduated from Hillsborough Community College. According to his public Facebook profile, his career experience has included work as a welder, mechanic, and as an independent contractor/media platform manager.

Taylor first entered politics in 2024, running for election to the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners District 4 seat as an NPA candidate. However, Taylor lost that bid and believed he did so in part because voters recognized him as ‘Matt the Welder’ rather than by his birth name, Matt Taylor.

In Jan. 2026, Taylor legally changed his name to his popular online moniker of ‘Matt the Welder,’ hoping to prevent future voter confusion. But after his name was changed, Florida enacted the SAVE Act requiring a legally changed name to be held for at least one full year before running for office; effectively barring Taylor from appearing on the ballot under his newly legalized name. While there remain ongoing legal challenges, Taylor will appear as a candidate on Florida ballots in August, but as his former legal name of ‘Matt Taylor.’

According to his campaign website, Taylor, who is a husband and father, grew up in a small town around agriculture, where he raised cattle, horses, and pigs. He was active in the FFA and spent time at rodeos, doing hands-on farm work and learning about agriculture and farming from a young age.

Taylor says he is running for Florida Commissioner of Agriculture because “Florida is losing farmland, clean water, and the small-town way of life that built it.” His platform priorities include: Protecting Rural Land, Standing with Farmers, Healthy Food in Schools, Conservation and Clean Water, and Consumer Protection. His website also includes a list of policy proposals intended to protect waterways and public health, ensuring “right to repair” for Florida farmers, updating greenbelt provisions, and protecting bees and pollinators, among other initiatives.

As of the most recent campaign finance reporting, Taylor’s campaign has reported raising $255,680 in monetary contributions, and another $3,647 in in-kind contributions. The campaign has reportedly already spent half of what it has raised, with reported expenditures of $165,630.

Of the total reported 3,801 separate contributions, only two were maximum donations of $3,000—instead drawing from a broad base of smaller individual contributors ranging from $5 to $500. Fewer of his reported contributions fell within the $1,000 to $2,000 range.

Taylor’s financial reports show no contributions from political committees, with roughly 90% or greater of his contributions having come from individuals reporting a Florida address.

For more information on local elections, visit our Voter Guide page. For more information on candidates, election dates, deadlines, or to register to vote, verify your registration, or to update your voter information, visit votemanatee.gov or the Florida Division of Elections.