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Draft:Ryan Elijah

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  • Comment: Candidates for political office are rarely, if ever, notable enough to meet WP:NPOL. If he wins in November we can re-assess. If you want to add the information to the article on the election itself, you are welcome to do so. Bkissin (talk) 23:59, 19 September 2026 (UTC)

Ryan Elijah
Personal details
Born1971 or 1972 (age 54–55)
PartyRepublican
EducationLiberty University (attended)
Anderson University (BA)

Ryan Elijah (born 1971/1972)[1] is an American politician and news anchor from Florida.[2] A member of the Republican Party, he is the nominee for the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 7th congressional district after defeating incumbent Cory Mills.

Education and news career

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Elijah grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana.[3] He attended Blackhawk Christian School and graduated in 1990; while a high school senior, he worked for the congressional campaign of Republican Rick Hawks.[4] Elijah attended Liberty University before earning a bachelor's in mass communications and political science from Anderson University in Indiana.[5][6] He competed in baseball and golf at Anderson.[7]

After college, Elijah began working in the news field in Jacksonville, Florida.[8] In Jacksonville, he served as a sports director at CBS and worked with the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL).[9][10] He served as a sideline reporter for the Jaguars radio network and co-hosted a team television program, while also spending time as an NFL sideline reporter for Fox.[11]

Political career

[edit]

Elijah previously ran for the Republican nomination in the 2010 Indiana's 3rd congressional district special election, losing to state Senator Marlin Stutzman in the second round of the party caucus.[12]

2026 U.S. House campaign

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In April 2026, Elijah launched his campaign for the United States House of Representatives for Florida's 7th congressional district as a Republican, challenging incumbent Cory Mills.[13] Mills was accused of sexual misconduct and had been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee over allegations of domestic violence and campaign finance violations.[14][15] Elijah earned the support of several elected Florida Republicans over Mills, including Representatives Mike Haridopolos and Anna Paulina Luna.[16] Elijah won the primary 47–34 over Mills and will face Democratic nominee Bale Dalton in the general election.[15]

Electoral history

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2026 Florida 7th congressional district election (Republican primary)
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Ryan Elijah 31,558 47.3
Republican Cory Mills (incumbent) 22,753 34.1
Republican Sarah Ulrich 7,010 10.5
Republican Mike Johnson 5,411 8.1
Total votes 66,732 100.0

References

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  1. ↑ "Florida's 7th District: Ryan Elijah, a former TV anchor, defeats embattled Congressman Cory Mills". Yahoo News. 2026-08-19. Retrieved 2026-09-16.
  2. ↑ https://ballotpedia.org/Ryan_Elijah
  3. ↑ Harper, Mark (April 30, 2026). "Elijah quits TV to run for Congress". Daytona Beach News-Journal. p. 1B, 2B – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ Winslow Brown, Lindsay (June 3, 2010). "Fort Wayne news anchor enters congressional race". KPC Media Group.
  5. ↑ Peryam, Jennifer (July 28, 2016). "Fort Wayne TV Anchor Running For Congress". Warsaw Times-Union.
  6. ↑ "Ryan Elijah, News Anchor". Anderson University. Retrieved August 18, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Ryan Elijah, News Anchor". Anderson University. Retrieved August 18, 2026.
  8. ↑ Winslow Brown, Lindsay (June 3, 2010). "Fort Wayne news anchor enters congressional race". KPC Media Group.
  9. ↑ Winslow Brown, Lindsay (June 3, 2010). "Fort Wayne news anchor enters congressional race". KPC Media Group.
  10. ↑ Peryam, Jennifer (July 28, 2016). "Fort Wayne TV Anchor Running For Congress". Warsaw Times-Union.
  11. ↑ "Ryan Elijah, News Anchor". Anderson University. Retrieved August 18, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Stutzman wins Republican caucus". The Journal Gazette. Archived from the original on 2012-11-02. Retrieved 2026-09-16.
  13. ↑ Vecerina, Michelle (2026-04-28). "Emmy-winning TV news anchor Ryan Elijah launches bid for Florida's 7th Congressional District". Florida’s Voice. Retrieved 2026-09-16.
  14. ↑ Pedersen, Joe Mario (2026-08-19). "Incumbent Cory Mills defeated; Ryan Elijah wins primary". Central Florida Public Media. Retrieved 2026-09-16.
  15. 1 2 Martin, Annie; Comas, Martin E. (2026-08-19). "Ryan Elijah, former TV anchor, defeats embattled Congressman Cory Mills". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 2026-09-16.
  16. ↑ Rego, Max (2026-08-05). "Luna, Haridopolos endorse against Mills in Florida House primary". The Hill. Retrieved 2026-09-16.