Miami Mayor Francis Suarez (R) was asked by Fox News host Kayleigh McEnany on Thursday why he decided to vote for Democrat Andrew Gillum over Ron DeSantis during the gubernatorial race in 2018.
Suarez, who has joined the 2024 presidential race, explained he only voted for Gillum, not endorse him. Suarez added he donated to money to DeSantis during the primary but he did not get a phone call back from the future governor.
"Well, I voted for him. I didn’t support him. I didn’t endorse him. I actually supported and gave money to Ron DeSantis in the primary at the same time when Donald Trump did, even when the governor said at the time that it wasn’t a smart move. But you know, I never got a phone call back. I never got a return call," Suarez said. "He just didn’t build a relationship with me and he lost my city by 20 points, didn’t connect with my voters. And so I supported him in his reelection and unfortunately just wasn’t able to build a relationship with him."
"But with what was at stake, I mean Gillum would have driven Florida into the ground. I mean, not calling back? Is that a reason?" McEnany asked.
"Well I think you have to build relationships with people. I’m a loyal person, and I think the fact that, for example, he was supported by Donald Trump, Donald Trump sort of got him to the finish line and now he’s turned around and not only run against the former president, but also sort of betrayed some of the people that helped him get there." Suarez replied. "I think it says more about him than it does about me."
DeSantis did flip Miami-Dade County to Republican during the recent 2022 midterm election, along with Palm Beach County.