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Vern Buchanan, co-chair of the state's congressional delegation
became the eighth Florida lawmaker to come out in support of the
former president, announcing his endorsement on Wednesday, hours
after a personal call from Trump.
"If we want to get our economy back on track, Donald Trump is
just the guy to get it done," Buchanan said.
Trump launched a bid for the 2024 Republican nomination in
November, and polls show he is leading the field of declared and
as-yet undeclared candidates. DeSantis is expected to launch a
run and is in second position in polls.
The string of Trump endorsements, including four in Florida and
five in two other states this week, have come as DeSantis faces
a barrage of insults on social media and attack ads from Trump's
camp.
"When your calling card is Florida and folks in your own
backyard defect that is never a good sign," said Ford O'Connell,
a Republican consultant who was a Trump campaign surrogate in
2020. "They have the DeSantis campaign in a vulnerable
position."
DeSantis' team had asked members of Florida's congressional
delegation to hold off announcing any endorsements, according to
a person familiar with the effort. Only one, Laurel Lee, stuck
with DeSantis, announcing her endorsement on Tuesday.
Trump contacted the lawmakers personally, inviting them to a
dinner at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Thursday night.
A DeSantis aide declined to comment.
A source familiar with DeSantis’ thinking said the wave of
endorsements had not persuaded the governor to accelerate his
timetable for a presidential announcement. DeSantis is expected
to make clear his intentions after the Florida legislature wraps
up its session in early May, followed by a more formal campaign
launch in June.
DeSantis, the source said, is currently limited by law as to
what he can do as a non-candidate and can’t explicitly ask for
endorsements. "We haven’t gotten started yet," the person said.
(Reporting by Nathan Layne in Wilton, Connecticut and Jim
Oliphant in Washington; Editing by Sonali Paul)
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