But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check
Frank Russo
Other · Governor, Florida
–No Position Found
How this mark works
We track key votes on sending U.S. weapons and money to the government of Israel. A check means every tracked vote they cast came down against sending more, on the side of peace and de-escalation. A question mark means a mixed record: they sided with sending up to half of the time. An X means they voted to send more weapons and money in over half of their tracked votes, even as the way those weapons and dollars were being used became more and more obvious. At exactly half, money this election cycle from a lobbying group we track, or an endorsement from a group that backs sending weapons, makes it an X. Only votes actually cast are counted. Where a candidate has no recorded votes on these bills, the mark comes instead from a reviewed reading of their public record (money from the lobbying groups we track, endorsements, and their own words since January 26, 2024). There an X also covers fully backing the conduct of the war by the government of Israel without significant reservations, and a question mark also covers speaking about Israel without saying clearly where they stand on U.S. weapons and funding. A dash means No Position Found: we found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.
No recorded votes on the bills we track. We found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.
Russo, a New Smyrna Beach insurance executive with no party affiliation, campaigns on property insurance, property tax relief and teacher pay. Nothing located as of September 2026 has him taking a position on U.S. weapons or money for the government of Israel, or on U.S. aid to Palestinians.
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Frank Russo is a candidate for governor of Florida with no party affiliation, and the Division of Elections lists him as qualified for the November 3, 2026 ballot with Rachel Rodriguez as his running mate; she ran in the Republican primary for governor and lost it on August 18. He lives in New Smyrna Beach, and his campaign site describes him as a Florida-born businessman with more than thirty years in insurance and executive work. The seat is open. Byron Donalds and David Jolly won the Republican and Democratic primaries, and the Division's listing for the office shows Scott Jewett of the Libertarian Party and four other candidates with no party affiliation also on the ballot.
This is an empty record on these questions rather than a thin one. His priorities are affordability, property insurance reform, housing, property tax relief, teacher pay and the skilled trades, a proposed tax on very large sums that he calls Florida 9.9, innovation, medical freedom and immigration. The press releases his campaign has issued since August, a dozen of them, cover the same ground and his challenges to his opponents to debate. The words Israel, Gaza and Palestinian appear nowhere on his site. He has not completed Ballotpedia's candidate survey. An empty record carries no implication either way, and a governor of Florida casts no federal votes on any of this.
You are better placed to change this than we are. Ask Russo directly, or at a candidate forum, and send us the reply: it goes on this page in his own words.
Research log
The notes behind this card: what we looked at, what we found, and where each item came from.
Our research for this card began with searches run on 2026-09-07 and 2026-09-28, and every page below was opened and read on 2026-09-28 unless the entry says otherwise. His campaign site was read in full in English: its home page and fifteen other pages, including all seven priority pages, the biographies of both candidates and the list of campaign news. He has never held federal office, so none of the congressional votes this site tracks are his, and a campaign for state office is not covered by the federal funding records this site tracks. Bands: Position (2024-01-26 onward), Reaction window (2023-10-07 to 2024-01-25), Earlier record (before 2023-10-07), Undated.
U.S. military aid and weapons to the government of Israel
Nothing located, at any date.
U.S. aid to Palestinians
Nothing located, at any date.
Characterization of the conflict
Nothing located, at any date.
Israel-related rhetoric and lobbying
Nothing located, at any date.
Safety and antisemitism (context, not an answer to what America sends)
Nothing located, at any date.
What the campaign site and own pages say
[Undated live site, read 2026-09-28] His campaign site, under the line "Humanity Over the Dollar", sets out seven priorities: affordability (including property insurance reform and property tax relief), children, teachers and the trades, Florida 9.9, immigration, innovation and medical freedom. His biography page calls him "A Florida-born businessman, entrepreneur, insurance executive, developer, humanitarian, father, and faith-guided leader." The immigration page says immigration "is primarily a federal responsibility" and that a governor cannot fix the national system alone; it is the only page that discusses what belongs to Washington, and it does not reach foreign policy. A search of every page read for israel, gaza, palestin, antisemit, jewish, aipac, foreign, hamas, middle east, weapon, military and war returns nothing.
[Position, 2026-08-05 to 2026-09-09] His campaign's news page lists his press releases: on debates with Byron Donalds and David Jolly, a proposed 9.9% tax on the largest incomes or spending, a housing accountability plan, a women's entrepreneurship initiative, property tax relief and a teacher pay raise, and a challenge to Florida's billionaires to invest in schools. The September 8 release and the release naming Rachel Rodriguez as his running mate were read in full. None concerns foreign policy.
[Read 2026-09-28] The Division of Elections' record for him lists Frank J. Russo for Governor, No Party Affiliation, running mate Rachel Rodriguez, of New Smyrna Beach, filed on November 13, 2025 and qualified on June 8, 2026 by paying the qualifying fee. The website it lists, realfolkswithrealbills.com, returned a hosting error; his current site is russo2026.com, which Ballotpedia and Politics1 both give. The Division's full listing for this office shows ten qualified candidates: Byron Donalds (Republican), David Jolly (Democrat), Scott Jewett (Libertarian Party of Florida), Dean Abrams, Charles Burkett, Jeffrey Datto, Moliere Dimanche and Frank Russo, each with no party affiliation, and two write-in candidates, Kathy Anderson and Erik Morris. The same listing records Rachel Rodriguez as a Republican candidate for governor eliminated in the primary.
[Read 2026-09-28] His Ballotpedia page lists him on the general election ballot and records that he has not completed its 2026 candidate survey.
Places that could not be read, so nothing is claimed from them
His campaign's accounts on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61585026176233), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/frankjohnrusso) and YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@FrankJohnRusso), and his personal Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/frank.russo.127/) and LinkedIn pages, which were not read; the videos on his site, which were not watched; and http://www.realfolkswithrealbills.com , which returned a hosting error.
Not on the card, and why
His platform and press releases: real positions, but not about U.S. weapons or money for the government of Israel, or about U.S. aid to Palestinians. Listed above so the absence is checkable.
Other people named Frank Russo whom searches returned, including a federal case in New Jersey: different people.
Byron Donalds's, David Jolly's and the other candidates' records: they belong on their own cards.
Sources read for this card (address; opened or could not open; date read)
https://russo2026.com/en and its pages under https://russo2026.com/en/ (priorities, priorities/affordability, priorities/children-teachers-trades, priorities/florida-9-9, priorities/immigration, priorities/innovation, priorities/medical-freedom, frank, rachel, ticket, news, media, trail, videos, events) (opened; 2026-09-28)
https://www.morningstar.com/news/pr-newswire/20260908la42509/frank-russo-pledges-property-tax-relief-and-historic-teacher-pay-raise-in-first-100-days (opened; 2026-09-28; released 2026-09-08) and https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/frank-russo-names-rachel-rodriguez-as-running-mate-in-florida-governors-race-302869072.html (opened; 2026-09-28; released 2026-09-03)
https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/us/news/breaking-news/florida-insurance-executive-frank-russo-launches-independent-run-for-governor-571755.aspx (opened; 2026-09-28; published 2026-04-14)
https://dos.elections.myflorida.com/candidates/CanDetail.asp?account=89571 and https://dos.elections.myflorida.com/candidates/CanList.asp?elecid=20261103-GEN&OfficeGroup=CAB&StatusCode=ALL&OfficeCode=GOV&CountyCode=ALL&FilterByDist=&DistrictCode=&PartyCode=ALL&CanName=&Search=Search (opened; 2026-09-28)
But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and
funding for the government of Israel. Every claim on this page goes through at least two verification steps.
Open Find Your Candidates for votes, funding and contact details.