Moliere "Moe" Dimanche, a Haitian American from Orlando registered as No Party Preference, is seeking the office of Florida governor in the general election Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. His running mate is Benjiman Rojas, according to the Florida Division of Elections.

Asked why he is running, Dimanche said in our candidate questionnaire: "I believe that most Floridians have had it with public corruption. It affects every aspect of our life and there is no way to escape it anymore … I'm in this race to put an end to corruption once and for all."

Other candidates include Byron Donalds (Republican), David Jolly (Democratic), Charles Burkett (No Party Preference), Dean Ocean Abrams (No Party Preference), Frank Russo (No Party Preference), Jeffrey Peter Datto (No Party Preference) and Scott Jewett (Libertarian), according to BallotReady election data.

Candidate information

Education: "I attended West Orange High School in Winter Garden, Florida and received a scholarship to attend Florida School of the Arts. Flo Arts is a part of St. John's River State College in Palatka, Florida," Dimanche said in our questionnaire.

Occupation: "I am a FedEx driver. I previously worked as a barber before I published a book called It Takes a Criminal to Know One: How the Inspector General and I are one and the Same. I took a book tour from 2016-2109 and showcased my art all over the world before I settled down and began working for FedEx," Dimanche said.

Family: "I have a ton of brothers, and no sisters. My father was deported to Haiti in 1988 and I don't really know him … We have 3 sons. My oldest son, Caleb is a 6th grader at Discovery Middle School, and we have 5-year-old identical twins," Dimanche said.

Party affiliation: "I am not affiliated with any party. I believe both parties can be right at times, and on the wrong side of things as well," Dimanche said.

Experience and public service

Dimanche said he has never held or been appointed to public office. He did not appear on the ballot in the 2023 Orlando mayoral race or a race for interim commissioner after technical issues with qualifying fees, according to Wikipedia.

In 2007, at age 19, Dimanche received a 10-year prison sentence for theft of construction materials, serving 8.5 years, according to Wikipedia. While incarcerated, Dimanche said he litigated a civil rights case, Dimanche v. Brown (2015), in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.

Asked how that case shaped his decision to run, Dimanche said: "It taught me that, no matter how hard things seem, the system works. No matter what the odds are, if you keep fighting, you can get there."

On the issues

Top priority: Asked about his top priority, Dimanche said in our questionnaire: "Florida needs to return to a place where the governor stayed out of the People's business, let them vote, and uphold whatever laws or Amendments the People pass."

Cost of living: Asked what the state should do about everyday expenses, Dimanche said: "Right now, most Americans spend a third of their income, minimum, on keeping a roof over their heads … In Orlando, the city acquired 300 abandoned properties to repurpose for affordable housing, but I want to GIVE these homes to Floridians for free."

Education: "I'd definitely like to see more funding and opportunities granted to parents who home-school their kids," Dimanche said.

Public safety: Dimanche said he led an effort to incorporate Pine Hills into its own municipality after a series of killings there in February 2023. "I wrote the charter for the City of West Orlando for free," he said.

Running without a party: "The two major parties are two sides of the same coin. Once we break away from that, we will see a state, and a country that finally meets our expectations," Dimanche said.

Dimanche filed his candidacy on June 26, 2024, and qualified on June 10, 2026, by paying the qualifying fee, according to the Florida Division of Elections.