Gillum found not guilty of lying to FBI, but mistrial declared. (Anthony, Izaguirre, AP via Orlando Sentinel, 4:20 pm, May 4, 2023)

TALLAHASSEE — Former Florida Democratic candidate for governor Andrew Gillum, who came within a whisker of defeating Republican Ron DeSantis in 2018, was acquitted Thursday of lying to the FBI in a corruption case that also involved illegal use of campaign contributions.

But the federal jury hung on charges that Gillum funneled tens of thousands of dollars in campaign money to personal accounts. The judge declared a mistrial, and prosecutors said they will retry him on those counts.

Prosecutors had claimed Gillum was struggling financially after quitting his $120,000-a-year job with the People for the American Way group to run for governor.

Gillum was acquitted of lying to undercover FBI agents posing as developers who paid for a 2016 trip he took with his brother to New York, including hotel rooms, meals, a boat tour and a ticket to the hit Broadway show “Hamilton.”