Much ink has been devoted to Governor Ron DeSantis’ dominant re-election win. He beat Charlie Crist in Miami-Dade and Palm Beach, crushed him just about everywhere else, and courted Hispanic support once thought unimaginable in Republican circles.
As a leader, DeSantis is the winner of the 2022 midterms. But, with eyes now on 2024, the DeSantis platform is an even more notable winner for Republicans.
Florida’s governor proved that business wins. The free market wins. Freedom wins. DeSantis is now the standard-bearer for American business, having fought for businesses large and small throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. He is America’s foremost business champion and her top governor as a result.
No Republican wins re-election in a Florida gubernatorial election by nearly 20 percentage points (about 1.5 million votes) if the economy isn’t a top priority. In Florida’s case, voters rewarded DeSantis for governing and keeping the economy top of mind—in good times and bad. Most Americans want their elected officials to promote small business, and that’s a large part of the reason why independents broke for DeSantis in 2022.
I’ve been a small business owner for decades, and the very concept of “small business” is so uniquely American that it’s supported across the board. Radical Left excluded, Americans across the socioeconomic spectrum hope for small businesses to succeed. And they cheer when that happens.
Small business is the most trusted institution in the United States, with nearly 70 percent of Americans having a great deal or quite a lot of belief in the local economy. Indeed, seven in 10 Americans shop locally to support that economy, and money speaks. Meanwhile, only seven percent of Americans trust Congress, which speaks to the disgust with Big Government.
Whereas Big Government is a losing platform, small business is a winning one—and DeSantis knows it. In his words: “Small businesses are the backbone of Florida’s economy and I remain committed to creating an environment where they can thrive.” That’s why the National Federation of Independent Business—America’s leading small business advocacy organization—handed DeSantis its “Guardian of Small Business” award in 2021. This year, DeSantis again rewarded the small business community’s trust by offering millions of dollars in bridge loans to those impacted by Hurricane Ian.
In 2024, DeSantis’ unwavering belief in business and freedom can and will resonate on the national stage. The American Dream remains broadly popular, as do leaders who share that dream. American voters know of DeSantis’s well-deserved reputation for supporting entrepreneurs, and entrepreneurship plays well in national politics too.
Consider that, in 2016, nearly two-thirds of Americans saw a U.S. economy in poor shape. Those voters broke for Donald Trump by a two-to-one margin, propelling him to the White House.
DeSantis can build on the Trump foundation in 2024. He is perfectly positioned to capitalize on that same popular mandate in the months ahead.
Under the Biden administration, many of America’s economic problems remain unsolved. Inflation is sky-high and Americans are frustrated with the decline in real earnings.
Small business owners are especially frustrated. Despite making up 99.9 percent of all businesses in the United States, America’s entrepreneurs feel left behind by the Biden administration and its anti-business policies. I’m one of them: President Biden repeated attacks on the free market are deeply troubling to me, given that freedom and liberty are the reasons for American prosperity over the decades.
The American Dream relies on the small business owners demanding new leadership in the White House. According to the pro-business Job Creators Network, three in five small business owners believe the economy is in a recession, while even more (71 percent) claim Biden isn't doing enough to combat inflation. Most oppose Biden’s so-called Inflation Reduction Act and the student loan bailout, both of which will only exacerbate the inflation crisis.
People are similarly fed up with Democrats who closed small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic and undermined entrepreneurship, setting back entrepreneurs even after the public health crisis subsided. The Democratic Party’s reckoning will come.
On the economy, Americans are ready for Ron. They are ready for a small business champion to make the Florida success story a national one. They are ready for a freedom fighter like DeSantis to win back the White House.
Joseph Semprevivo is the owner of Joseph’s Premier Real Estate in Vero Beach and an advocate for Ready for Ron PAC.