The Byron Donalds campaign is firing back after a Collier County woman filed a civil assault lawsuit accusing the Republican gubernatorial candidate of threatening and intimidating her during a 2022 confrontation inside a Naples grocery store.
In the complaint, Kelly Mason alleges Donalds confronted her at Seed to Table over litigation involving his wife, while Mason was with her husband and two young children.
The suit claims Donalds berated her, threatened to “crush” or “finish” her, and that senior advisor Larry Wilcoxson followed her through the store while yelling. Mason is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, plus a jury trial.
Donalds’ team calls the lawsuit a political hit.
“This is a baseless, politically motivated attack and shameful publicity stunt designed to damage Byron Donalds in the 2026 election. This individual has a long history of unsuccessful litigation against the Donalds family. Floridians deserve better news coverage than lazy reprints of a tabloid,” said Gates McGavick, Donalds' campaign communications director, in a statement.
Court records show the case was filed July 7 in Collier County as an “Other Circuit Civil” matter, with a complaint and demand for jury trial docketed the same day.
The lawsuit lands as Donalds, a Trump-endorsed Republican congressman, campaigns to replace term-limited Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2026.
For now, the case adds a new political flashpoint to an already escalating GOP primary, with Donalds’ campaign arguing the allegation is less about the courtroom than the campaign trail.
