President Joe Biden’s campaign is scrambling after campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said she doesn’t consider Florida a battleground state for the incumbent Democratic president, with the campaign’s battleground state director now saying it’s “definitely an issue.”
O’Malley Dillon caused a stir when he acknowledged on a podcast that the Biden campaign had essentially given up on winning Florida and its 30 electoral votes in November.
When asked if she thought Florida was truly a battleground state, she said she didn’t.
HEILMAN: Do you consider North Carolina a battleground state as well?
O’Malley Dillon: Yes.
HEILMAN: Florida?
O’Malley Dillon: No.https://t.co/lfxbxyXSJy— Nick Field (@nick_field90) June 24, 2024
While criticizing Florida through paid Puck News articles, @FloridaForBiden Staff is on site but organization here is not good. https://t.co/TxsnxkKbvJ
— Kevin Cate (@KevinCate) June 24, 2024
Many of our staff, consultants and organisers are in no position to say so, but this was a totally unnecessary and demoralising shock.
to everyone Frademus We must give it our all in local and state elections and never give in.
Let’s keep fighting. Let’s keep organizing.
And one day we’ll turn it over.— Kevin Cate (@KevinCate) June 24, 2024
The Biden campaign panicked. tell of Orlando Sentinel I never gave up on Florida.
“Florida is definitely on the ballot,” Dan Kanninen, Biden’s battleground states director, told the paper.
“We will be in all the major markets in Florida,” he continued. [former President Donald] “Trump hasn’t invested in this state, but we have a strong leadership team on the ground who are building an organizing team.”
According to the media, the Biden campaign “has 28 full-time staffers, a political director and a communications director, and has opened offices in 13 major cities across the state, from Miami to Pensacola.”
Even Nikki Fried, chair of the Florida Democratic Party, is confident Biden can win Florida, while Evan Power, chair of the Florida Republican Party, completely rejects that notion.
Biden campaign optimistic of winning Florida https://t.co/d2qMpwB1md
— Nikki Fried (@NikkiFried) June 25, 2024
“Why does she keep doing this?” he asked Fried. Orlando Sentinel“We’re going to win Florida, and we’re going to win big.”
Why does she continue to do this? https://t.co/OQo5LIAXr8
— Evan Power (@EvanPower) June 25, 2024
But Democrats are still fighting, and appear to be banking on the abortion issue to sway Florida voters back to the Democratic Party.
“The electorate is changing and diverse, and Donald Trump is a rising voice,” said Avi Rahman, deputy director of communications for the Democratic National Committee. Roe v. Wade “It paves the way for a six-week abortion ban in Florida, and Democrats up and down the state know they have a path to victory in Florida.”
“The people of Florida know Trump. [Gov. Ron] “I directly criticize the failures of DeSantis and the MAGA extremism of the Florida Republican Party, and I am prepared to send Trump back to Mar-a-Lago for good in November,” Lerman added.
But the numbers are not in their favor: Florida is a heavily Republican state that voted for Trump in both 2016 and 2020. For the first time in the state’s history, Republicans have more registered voters than Democrats, and their lead continues to explode.
Breitbart News reports:
From that moment on, Republicans continued to widen their lead, outnumbering Democrats by more than 100,000 just a few months later in March 2022. That figure doubled to 200,000 in July and was around 350,000 in December 2022. By February 2023, Republicans outnumbered Democrats by 400,000 in registered voters, swelling that figure to 680,030. As of October 31, 2023, there are 5,153,695 Republican voters and 4,473,665 Democratic voters.
Republicans are approaching a 1 million voter registration advantage in Florida.
What’s New: Florida Voter Registration by Party as of June 18, 2024 (Changes after December 31, 2023)
🔴 5,238,195 REP (+96,347)
🔵 4,300,656 DEM (-61,491)
✅ @FloridaGOP By 937,539 points Frademus
🚨 Republican voter turnout increased by 157,838 in 170 daysRepublican average monthly lead increase in 2024: 30,194
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) June 18, 2024
— Evan Power (@EvanPower) June 18, 2024
Let’s get to 1 million. Send a clear message to Democrats and register as a Republican now. https://t.co/WtXuBGy4ZG
— Republican Party of Florida (@FloridaGOP) June 19, 2024
RealClearPolling poll average: Trump Take the lead Biden won Florida by 7.6 percentage points.
