Ron “Don’t Say Gay” DeSantis just suffered through his most humiliating night yet
DeSantis is trying to flex his political muscle at the expense of LGBTQ+ people and other marginalized individuals, but two key races on Tuesday night further exposed his weak hand.
Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign is floundering due to his alienating personality and litany of missteps. And now, we’re maybe starting to see the proof on the ground.
On Tuesday, Jacksonville elected a Democratic mayor for only the second time since 1995. Former TV news anchor Donna Deegan defeated Daniel Davis, a hard-right Republican with DeSantis’ endorsement.
That’s big news on its own: Jacksonville was the largest city with a GOP mayor (No. 11). That distinction now goes to Fort Worth, which is No. 12. (Colorado Springs, previously the sixth-largest city with a Republican mayor, also elected a Democrat Tuesday night).
But the news of Jacksonville going blue is even more significant once you consider the city’s political structure.
The Jacksonville city government consolidated with the Duval County government in 1968, meaning everybody in the county votes for mayor–not just people living in the City of Jacksonville. So no, this can’t be dismissed as just another large urban area rejecting conservatives.
Duval County is the definition of a swing area: it voted for the Democratic nominee for governor in 2018, the Republican mayor in 2019, President Joe Biden in 2020 and DeSantis last year. He carried Duval County by nearly 12 points.
In the grand scheme, Florida Democrats are still reeling. There is a Republican supermajority in the state legislature and several blue counties are now red, including Miami-Dade. DeSantis won reelection by 19 points in 2022.
But Deegan’s victory could be a start. It’s probably the best political story for Florida Democrats since Andrew Gillum narrowly lost the governorship to DeSantis in 2018, if we’re being honest.
Deegan, 62, campaigned as a “change candidate” and played up her relationships across the city, according to the New York Times.
“Love won tonight, and we made history,” she tweeted. “We have a new day in Jacksonville because people chose unity over division—creating a broad coalition of people across the political spectrum that want a unified city.”
Deegan’s 52-48 win over Davis, who outraised her 4-to-1, is an indication that DeSantis’ hard right turn may be too much for Floridians. His full-throated embrace of the culture wars and far-right policies, such as signing a six-week abortion ban, have already repelled donors. GOP mega donor Thomas Petterfy told the Financial Times that DeSantis’ views on “abortion and book banning” have caused him to pull his financial support.
Maybe swing voters are equally turned off. This week, a group of angry moms sued the DeSantis Administration to stop book bans at school districts throughout the panhandle.
DeSantis’ assault on the LGBTQ+ community has been unwavering. Just on Wednesday, he signed a law outlawing gender-affirming care for minors, and an anti-trans bathroom bill that allows adults to be criminally charged if they don’t use the bathroom that matches the sex they were assigned at birth.
He’s also expanded Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law, which prohibits classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity, to cover all grade levels, and signed a bill legalizing anti-LGBTQ+ medical discrimination.
And we didn’t even mention his futile feud with Disney!
It’s apparent that DeSantis is trying to pander to the national Republican base with far-right positions. But that doesn’t seem to be working. His poll numbers are akin to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s; and on Tuesday, his endorsed candidate for governor of a deep-red state lost her primary.
On Monday, DeSantis made a last-minute endorsement of Kelly Craft, a former United Nations ambassador under Donald Trump, who was running in Kentucky’s gubernatorial race.
Good to know his track record for endorsements is following Trumps. They don't represent most of America and it shows.— SassyT is tired of the GOP
(@Sassyt1274) May 17, 2023
Despite her MAGA bonafides–and heavy spending–Craft was projected to lose the Republican primary to the state’s attorney general, and Mitch McConnell favorite, Daniel Cameron.
If Craft’s campaign thought pulling out DeSantis would sway some voters, there were clearly mistaken. She wound up performing even worse than expected, finishing a distant third with just 17% of the vote (Cameron won with 47%).
Last weekend in Iowa, DeSantis told Republican voters it was time to change the party’s “culture of losing” under Trump.
On Tuesday, Cameron turned his words right back at him.
DeSantis is trying to flex his political muscle at the expense of LGBTQ+ people and other marginalized individuals, but two key races on Tuesday night further exposed his weak hand.
Scroll down for more reaction to DeSantis’ rough night…
Anti-democracy @GOP book banner and misogynist Ron DeSantis losing is good for America.— Robert Fanney
I can’t figure out why people don’t love Ron DeSantis. pic.twitter.com/0rX5iz7qhH— Pete Puma (@PeterPumer) May 17, 2023
The kiss of DeathSantis.— Dare_L (@dare_l) May 17, 2023
Amazing. Good things are still possible in Florida if we all show up to vote!— Darrin Hall (@DarrinHall15) May 17, 2023
See the Resemblance? pic.twitter.com/wyhUCKBP36— The Resistor Sister®
(@the_resistor) May 16, 2023
Good to know his track record for endorsements is following Trumps. They don’t represent most of America and it shows.— SassyT is tired of the GOP
“L” Santis seems a nice nick going forward.— Brobin4
(@brob0444) May 17, 2023
Maybe this totally normal dude just isn’t likable
pic.twitter.com/SrV9QUGN5s— Mike
(@mikew71772) May 17, 2023
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