Three candidates on the ballot for Vern Buchanan’s open District 16 seat; Republican Sydney Gruters reported the most cash on hand

Three qualified candidates are on the Nov. 3, 2026, general election ballot for Florida’s 16th Congressional District, and none is the incumbent, according to the Florida Division of Elections candidate list. Republican Sydney Gruters, Democrat Kelly Kirschner and Mark Davis, who has no party affiliation, are listed as qualified.¹

The seat is open. The Division of Elections lists U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, the Republican incumbent, as a 2026 candidate for District 16 with the status “Did Not Qualify.”¹ The News Service of Florida reported in May, in a story published by WUSF, that Buchanan had said he would not run for another term.²

Six other candidates were defeated in the primaries, the state list shows: Republicans Ed Pope and Eddie Speir and Democrats Jon Harris, Tamika Lyles, Glenn Pearson and Jan Schneider.¹

The district

The district was redrawn this year. Its legal description in the map the Legislature passed as HB 1-D takes in all of DeSoto, Hardee and Manatee counties and parts of Hillsborough, Pinellas, Polk and Sarasota counties; the Hillsborough part is two census tracts and one block of a third.³ The News Service of Florida reported that the new lines take in part of St. Petersburg, and that President Donald Trump carried the area as drawn 56-43 in 2024.²

The candidates

WGCU profiled the three candidates on Oct. 16. It reported that this is Gruters’ first run for office; that she previously worked on Buchanan’s staff and as district director for U.S. Rep. Greg Steube; that she most recently led advancement at the New College Foundation; and that she is married to state Sen. Joe Gruters, chairman of the Republican National Committee. WGCU reported that Kirschner is a former Sarasota city commissioner and mayor who has also served as a vice president of Eckerd College, and that Davis is an Air Force veteran and small business owner.⁴

At a League of Women Voters online forum, WUSF reported, Kirschner called for restoring Affordable Care Act subsidies that lapsed in December, Gruters said she supports requiring identification to vote and opposes a government takeover of health care, and Davis said he supports universal health care paid for by taxing billionaires.⁵

Campaign money

Each candidate’s principal campaign committee reported these totals to the Federal Election Commission through Sept. 30, 2026:

• Mark Davis (Mark Davis for Florida): $64,411.56 raised, $60,787.79 spent and $3,623.77 cash on hand, covering Aug. 5, 2025, through Sept. 30, 2026.⁶
• Sydney Gruters (Sydney Gruters for Congress): $1,573,617.20 raised, $957,312.08 spent and $616,305.12 cash on hand, covering April 1 through Sept. 30, 2026.⁷
• Kelly Kirschner (Kelly Kirschner for Congress): $751,617.25 raised, $398,837.00 spent and $352,780.25 cash on hand, covering April 1 through Sept. 30, 2026.⁸

What the records do not show

• The FEC totals above do not include spending by outside groups for or against any candidate.
• The state candidate list does not show why Buchanan did not qualify; that comes from his public statements as reported.
• These records do not show how many registered voters live in the redrawn district or how they are split by party.
• Campaign activity after Sept. 30, 2026, is not yet reflected in the reports cited here.