If you searched “Jay Collins Wikipedia,” you are likely trying to sort out who Florida’s lieutenant governor actually is right as he competes in a closely watched Republican primary for governor. This article lays out what is confirmed about his military background, political career, and family, with today’s date marked clearly for anything time-sensitive. It also separates verified facts from vague or unsourced claims floating around online.
Background: Who Is Jay Collins and Why Is He Trending?
Jay Collins, whose full legal name is Jarrid Collins, is a retired U.S. Army Green Beret who now serves as the 21st lieutenant governor of Florida. Governor Ron DeSantis appointed him to the role in August 2025 after Collins spent nearly three years representing Tampa’s District 14 in the Florida Senate. Before politics, Collins spent more than two decades in Army Special Forces, including combat deployments where he was wounded badly enough to eventually lose part of his leg, yet he stayed in uniform for years afterward.
People are searching his name today because he is a candidate in Florida’s 2026 Republican gubernatorial primary, running to succeed the term-limited DeSantis. He is up against a field that includes U.S. Representative Byron Donalds, former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, and investment executive James Fishback, and the Republican primary lands on the calendar this month. That combination of a dramatic military story and a high-stakes statewide race is pulling a lot of new attention to his name.
📌 Quick context: Collins goes by “Jay,” but his legal first name is Jarrid. Both names show up in official state and campaign records.
Latest Update
As of August 18, 2026, here is what’s currently known. Today is the date of Florida’s Republican primary for governor, and Jay Collins is on the ballot as one of the candidates seeking the nomination. In the days leading up to the vote, Collins announced Kevin Guthrie, Florida’s emergency management director, as his pick for a running mate should he win the nomination and move on to the general election.
Collins has spent the primary campaign leaning heavily on his military record and his current role as lieutenant governor, framing his platform around affordability, public safety, and continuing DeSantis-era policies. No results from today’s primary vote were available at the time this article was written, so any claim about who won should be treated as unconfirmed until official results are certified.
⚠️ Heads up: Primary election results can take hours to be finalized and even longer to be officially certified. Do not treat early reporting or unofficial counts as the final word on this race.
Full Profile
Family and Early Life
Jay Collins was born in Scobey, Montana, and raised there before eventually settling in Florida. According to his campaign, he was raised and adopted by his grandparents on a small family farm, where he learned the work ethic he often references in interviews. He was in Airborne School when the September 11 attacks happened, and that event pushed him to pursue Army Special Forces selection soon after.
Career Path
Collins served in the U.S. Army from 1995 to 2018, spending most of that time in Army Special Forces as a Green Beret medic. He deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq, and twice to South America, and during a 2007 deployment to Afghanistan he was shot in the arm and helped treat his own wound in the field. Injuries from that same deployment period eventually led to the amputation of his leg, but he re-qualified as a deployable Green Beret and served more than five additional years on active duty before retiring at the rank of first sergeant.
After leaving the Army, Collins worked as chief operating officer of Operation BBQ Relief, a nonprofit that provides meals after natural disasters. He entered politics in 2021, running first for a U.S. House seat before shifting to a Florida Senate campaign in 2022, which he won. In the state senate he chaired the Agriculture and Transportation committees and sponsored bills on topics ranging from concealed carry to dangerous-dog regulations. DeSantis appointed him lieutenant governor in August 2025, and Collins launched his campaign for governor in January 2026.
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1995 | Enlisted in the U.S. Army |
| 2007 | Wounded during an Afghanistan deployment; later leads to leg amputation |
| 2010 | Earned a B.S. in health sciences from American Military University |
| 2012 | Earned a graduate degree from Norwich University |
| 2018 | Retired from the U.S. Army as a first sergeant; moved family to Florida |
| 2022 | Elected to the Florida Senate, District 14 |
| August 12, 2025 | Appointed the 21st lieutenant governor of Florida |
| January 2026 | Launched campaign for governor of Florida |
| August 18, 2026 | Republican gubernatorial primary held |
Age
Jay Collins was born on April 28, 1976, which makes him 50 years old as of August 2026.
Religion
State legislative records list Collins’s religious affiliation as Christian. No further denominational detail has been independently confirmed.
Spouse/Partner
Collins has been married twice. His first marriage, to Colleen Collins-Madsen, ended in divorce. He has been married to Layla Collins, a retired military veteran, since 2000. Layla Collins has her own public profile in Florida politics, having run unsuccessfully for the Hillsborough County school board in 2024 before DeSantis appointed her to the Florida Board of Education in 2025.
Net Worth
This is unconfirmed. No independently verified net worth figure for Jay Collins has been published, and this article will not guess at a number. What is confirmed is his government salary, which multiple sources put at roughly $125,000 to $135,000 a year in his role as lieutenant governor.
Parents
Public information about Collins’s biological parents is limited. His campaign has stated that he was raised and adopted by his grandparents on a family farm in Montana, but the identities of his biological parents have not been made public.
Height
This is unconfirmed. No verified height figure for Jay Collins appears in reliable public records or official biographies.
Education
Collins earned a Bachelor of Science degree in health sciences and pre-medicine from American Military University in 2010, graduating summa cum laude. He went on to earn a Master of Science in organizational leadership from Norwich University in 2012, with honors.
Hometown/State of Origin
Jay Collins was born and raised in Scobey, Montana. He moved his family to Florida in 2018, first settling in Pasco County before the family relocated to the Tampa area.
Official Social Media
You can follow Jay Collins’s official updates on Facebook at facebook.com/JayCollinsFL.
🗓️ Key date to remember: August 18, 2026 — Florida’s Republican primary for governor, with Jay Collins on the ballot.
Reader Questions (FAQ)
Does Jay Collins have an official Wikipedia page?
Yes, Jay Collins has an official Wikipedia page under the name “Jay Collins,” which also lists his legal name, Jarrid Collins. The page covers his military service, Florida Senate career, and current role as lieutenant governor.
Is Jay Collins running for governor of Florida?
Yes, Jay Collins launched his campaign for governor of Florida in January 2026 and is a candidate in the Republican primary held on August 18, 2026. He is running to succeed term-limited Governor Ron DeSantis.
How did Jay Collins lose his leg?
Collins was injured during Army Special Forces deployments, including being shot in the arm in Afghanistan in 2007. Follow-on injuries from that period eventually led to the amputation of his leg, though he continued serving as a Green Beret for more than five more years afterward.
Who is Jay Collins’s running mate?
Jay Collins named Kevin Guthrie, who serves as director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, as his choice for lieutenant governor running mate ahead of the August 2026 primary.
Who is Jay Collins’s wife?
Jay Collins is married to Layla Collins, a retired military veteran, and they have been married since 2000. Layla Collins currently serves on the Florida Board of Education after an earlier appointment by Governor DeSantis.
How old is Jay Collins?
Jay Collins was born on April 28, 1976, making him 50 years old as of August 2026.
What did Jay Collins do before politics?
Before entering politics, Collins served more than 23 years in the U.S. Army, largely in Army Special Forces as a Green Beret medic. After retiring from the military, he worked as chief operating officer of the disaster relief nonprofit Operation BBQ Relief.
Wrap-Up
Jay Collins’s path from a Montana farm to Army Special Forces to the second-highest office in Florida is unusually well documented for a state-level politician, largely because his military service and combat injuries have been central to how he presents himself publicly. His legislative record in the Florida Senate and his rapid rise to lieutenant governor are backed by consistent reporting across multiple outlets, which is not always the case for people whose names suddenly start trending.
What makes this moment different is timing. Today’s Republican primary means the “latest update” on Jay Collins is genuinely in motion, not a static biography. Readers checking in on primary night or the days after should expect the outcome of the vote, and possibly a general election matchup, to change fairly quickly, so treat any information about the race’s outcome as provisional until official results are certified.
For the personal details that gossip sites tend to speculate about, like his exact net worth or physical stats, there simply is not reliable public data available right now. That gap says more about how thin some biography content can be for working politicians than it does about Collins himself, and it is worth remembering the next time a “wiki” style page claims to have numbers nobody has actually published.
John Wood is the founder and lead editor of Biography Region. He researches and writes accurate, engaging biographies of celebrities, entrepreneurs, influencers, and public figures, delivering well-sourced, reader-focused content that informs and inspires.