Florida gubernatorial candidate who proposed 50% "sin" tax on OnlyFans creators says he was victim of arson
A Florida gubernatorial candidate who made headlines in January after proposing a 50% "sin" income tax on OnlyFans creators claims he recently was the victim of arson.
According to James Fishback's campaign, the incident took place at his home in Madison, a city east of Tallahassee close to the Georgia border, in northern Florida.
The campaign said the incident took place Sunday night, and that the flames got close to his home while Fishback and his staffers were working. It was Fishback's first time home in 10 weeks since he launched his campaign to become Florida's next governor.
"Yesterday, an arsonist tried to set my house on fire," Fishback said on his Instagram account. "Tonight, I'm hosting a rally at my house, where I'll take questions and share my vision to make Florida more affordable."
It's unknown if any suspects are in custody, and the fire department has not said if it was investigating the incident as arson.
Fishback previously made headlines for some proposals considered to be controversial, like a so-called 50% "sin" tax on OnlyFans creators. Fishback has argued that the tax revenue would be used to raise teacher pay and improve school lunches.
Fishback says OnlyFans exploits women
Fishback framed his proposal as a moral stance, saying he believes the platform exploits women.
"My message to the owners of OnlyFans is get the hell out of our state. I hope you get bankrupt. Don't you dare come to my state and try to exploit and abuse young women," he said. "My message to the men buying this content: stop! My message to the women who are being exploited — stop."
Florida 2026 gubernatorial election timeline
The primary election for Florida's gubernatorial race is scheduled for Aug. 18, with the general election set for Nov. 3.