Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tore into Rep.-elect Randy Fine (R-FL) on Wednesday after he won the special election.
In a Wednesday press conference, the governor said his expectation came true, that Fine would “win but underperform.”
Fine was once a political ally of DeSantis, serving in the Florida Legislature and working as DeSantis’ Jewish Outreach Chair. Their friendship dwindled after the representative-elect endorsed Trump in the 2024 election, saying in an op-ed that DeSantis had not done enough to combat antisemitism in the state amid the Israel- Hamas war. Trump later went on to endorse Fine in the congressional race.
READ: Florida Sen. Rick Scott Eyes Blocking U.S. Gov Contracts With Maduro Regime Supporters
“I think you have a candidate in Randy Fine who, one, he’s a squish,” the governor said. “He supported restrictions on Second Amendment rights back in 2018, he tried to defeat my immigration proposal to help president Trump enforce immigration laws, and he tried to make Florida a de facto sanctuary state.”
“So when people see that, our base voters don’t get excited about that. You’re not giving them a reason to go out and vote,” he continued. “Also, just the way he conducts himself … he repels people. He’s repelled people in the Legislature.”
DeSantis went on to claim he was asked to get Fine out of the Legislature, so he put the representative-elect up for Florida Atlantic president.
“The whole board would have resigned rather than make him president, and so now he’s gonna be in Congress – I mean, you know it is what it is,” DeSantis said.
READ: Florida Supreme Court Upholds Death Sentence For Michael A. Tanzi
DeSantis attributed the special election’s voter turnout to Trump’s intervention in motivating people to go vote during tele-town halls.
“I think these are voters who didn’t like Randy Fine but who basically were like, ‘You know what, we’re gonna take one for the team. The president needs another vote up there and so we’re gonna do it,’” he said.
“A dying star burns hottest before it fades into oblivion,” Fine wrote in response to DeSantis in a post on X. “I’m focused on working with @realDonaldTrump to stop Democrats from taking this country backwards, not working with them. Let’s go.”
Fine brought in over 110,000 votes, winning Florida’s 6th Congressional District against his Democratic opponent Joshua Weil, who gathered over 83,000 votes.
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Connect with us: Follow the Tampa Free Press on Facebook and Twitter for breaking news and updates.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox.
