UPDATED: 18 FEB 2023 03:51 PM EST
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Republicans on Saturday picked a political consultant with ties to former President Donald Trump advisers to lead the state party heading into the 2024 presidential cycle — a move that some supporters of Gov. Ron DeSantis fear is a “giant Florida win for Trump.”
Christian Ziegler defeated Evan Power 126-100 in the election to chair the Republican Party of Florida. Ziegler previously was the party’s vice chair, while Power served as the statewide GOP chair of chairs and as the leader of the Leon County Republican Party.
They were running to replace outgoing chair Joe Gruters, who decided to not seek reelection.
After they selected Ziegler, party members picked Power to serve as his vice chair.
“While the results may not be what I personally wanted, the Republican Party is well positioned with a unified team that will work constantly to beat the Democrats in Florida,” Power said.
Both Ziegler and Power have said publicly throughout the race that their job as party chair would be to support Republicans and not meddle in primaries, but the race was viewed as a minor proxy war between supporters of Trump and DeSantis. Trump has already announced he is running for president and is increasingly attacking the Florida governor, who many anticipate will be his strongest challenger for the Republican nomination. DeSantis is expected to declare his candidacy in Spring.
Ziegler, a Republican political consultant with clients across the country, has worked closely with former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, giving some the perception he was a more Trump-aligned candidate even as he has professed his support for DeSantis since he first took office in 2018. Ziegler’s wife, Bridget, is the co-founder of the conservative parental rights organization Moms for Liberty and was endorsed by DeSantis in her race for Sarasota County school board.
Trump’s team did nothing to downplay the proxy war perception after the vote.
“Chair races across the country are and should be important for people running for president,” said a consultant familiar with the Trump campaign's thinking. The person was granted anonymity to freely discuss the race. “To that extent, the more Trump candidate won today. That means the Trump campaign is likely pleased with the outcome.”
DeSantis’s team brushed off any suggestion that Ziegler’s win represented a loss for the governor, nothing Power will still be vice chair and the governor works well with both.
“Both of our guys won, and we look forward to working with them,” said a DeSantis adviser who was not authorized to speak publicly. DeSantis did not personally get involved in the race.
Power’s supporters, who would back DeSantis over Trump if the governor ran for president, were less optimistic. Trump, they say, could secure more influence in Florida with Ziegler leading the GOP since the party chair has sway over decisions on ballot access and how party money is spent. The chair also helps get-out-the-vote efforts, including early voting and vote-by-mail pushes.
“DeSantis didn’t weigh in at all on the [Republican Party of Florida] race, and I think he regrets it,” said one GOP consultant backing DeSantis who was given anonymity to discuss the race openly. “Ziegler is 100% Trump. He’s partners with Lewandowski and others. This is a giant Florida win for the Trump people.”
Another DeSantis supporter said, “I think six months from now, DeSantis may have some serious regret not getting involved.”
Harmeet Dhillon, who backed Trump’s 2020 election challenges and recently lost in her bid to be Republican National Committee chair, praised Ziegler’s win.
“I’m thrilled that Christian, who is respected by Republicans across the state and who has the confidence of so many conservative leaders, including elected officials, was elected as chair,” she said in a statement to POLITICO.
Over the past few election cycles, the state GOP has turned Florida into essentially a one-party state. Republicans dominated every significant race during the 2022 midterms, including DeSantis' reelection, which he won by nearly 20 percentage points.
That sort of track record helped Ziegler snag the victory.
“When you consistently outperform the rest of the nation in back-to-back election cycles, you don’t suddenly rewrite the playbook for victory,” said Florida GOP consultant Max Goodman. “Ziegler’s experience as vice chair of the party will allow a seamless transition as he works to expand the majority and match the results of his predecessor.”
