‘DeSantis Democrats’: Why blue voters are switching to red in Florida
Jack Birle
“DeSantis Democrats” may have been central to the overwhelming reelection last month of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL).
He won several Democratic-leaning areas, including Miami-Dade County.
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Voters who have not considered voting Republican before flipped to DeSantis in 2022, according to a report from the Free Press.
Voters cited in the report gave various reasons for the way they voted. Many cited economic concerns, specifically inflation, as their main motivation. But a bevy of them also cited DeSantis’s leadership abilities, his ideology, and how “he kept the schools open and taxes low.”
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“He’s the good parts of Trump without that cockiness,” Andres Arcila told the Free Press.
Voters surveyed in the report ranged from a bartender at a Miami strip club to an information technology specialist from Jacksonville. This hints at the diversity of voters who supported DeSantis in his landslide 59.4%-40% victory over Democrat Charlie Crist.
DeSantis’s burgeoning appeal is prompting comparisons with “Reagan Democrats,” a historical reference that cannot but be pleasing to the Florida governor, who already leads many Republican polls of presidential contenders. Many former Democrats switched to support President Ronald Reagan, delivering a thumping Republican victory in 1980 and a 49-state landslide in 1984.
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Voters were captivated by Reagan’s policies and leadership at a time of high inflation and low public morale, conditions that are partially echoed today. If DeSantis can translate his success in Florida to the rest of the country, he could find his way in the White House.
DeSantis is seen as one of the top candidates in the GOP field for the 2024 presidential election, leading recent polls ahead of other top candidates, including former President Donald Trump.