Florida Sen Rick Scott endorses Trump over home state Gov DeSantis

Florida Sen. Rick Scott endorsed former President Donald Trump on Thursday over his home-state governor, Ron DeSantis, as he called for Republicans to unite behind the partyâs 2024 front-runner.

âI support my friend President Donald J. Trump to be the 47th president of the United States and encourage every Republican to unite behind his efforts to win back the White House,â Scott wrote in an op-ed published in Newsweek.

This is not the first time Scott has aligned himself with Trump over one of his stateâs native sons. In 2016, with two Floridians, Sen. Marco Rubio and former Gov. Jeb Bush, both seeking the GOP nomination for president, Scott, then Floridaâs governor, wrote a glowing op-ed that heralded Trump as a figure who was âcapturing the frustration of many Americansâ and, like other former political outsiders, injecting the political scene with ânew ideas and new energy.â He didnât formally endorse Trump, but the intention was clear.

With his announcement Thursday, Scott joins most Republicans in Floridaâs US House delegation in endorsing the former president over DeSantis. Like those previous congressional endorsements, which arrived as DeSantis was just about to formally enter the presidential race, this one comes at an opportune moment. The Florida GOP will host all the candidates on Saturday at an event that will test the respective strength of DeSantis and Trump among state Republicans.

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