Florida Governor-elect Byron Donalds said Wednesday that frustration over gas and diesel prices may have hurt Republicans at the polls on Election Day.
Asked on “Fox & Friends” why voters were unhappy with the first two years of President Trump’s second term, Donalds pointed to fuel costs and what he described as missed opportunities in Congress. Democrats won control of both chambers in the midterm elections and picked up governor’s offices in states including Texas, Georgia and Ohio.
“When you talk to people on the ground, gas prices are a major problem,” Donalds said. “People were looking at the price of gas, the price of diesel, and I think those frustrations boiled over.”
He also said Republicans were frustrated that the Senate had not passed the Save America Act or advanced some of Trump’s border security proposals into law.
Donalds said some Republicans stayed home while others voted for Democrats, a shift he believes his party needs to address. He plans to discuss the issue with colleagues in Washington during the lame-duck session and said his administration would focus on it in Florida as well.
Donalds credited his campaign’s ground operation for his win, saying it knocked on more than 2.2 million doors. He said the campaign focused on issues important to Floridians, including insurance and housing costs and the quality of education.
He thanked voters across the state, particularly in the Panhandle, which he said helped keep Florida conservative. Donalds also said he wanted to speak to all Floridians and make the state more affordable while helping children pursue what he called the Florida dream.
Donalds, a three-term representative from southwest Florida, defeated former Democratic Rep. David Jolly. His victory made him the first Black person elected governor of Florida and the first Black Republican elected governor in U.S. history.
President Trump endorsed Donalds in February of last year, before Donalds formally launched his campaign.
