Florida Republicans have surpassed Democrats in the contest for voter registration, according to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ announcement on Friday.
“Today for the first time in the history of Florida we’ve now overtaken Democrats,” DeSantis declared at the National Conference of State Legislatures. The Tampa Bay Times was the first to report on the governor’s remarks.
The most recent Florida voter registration figures accessible to the public, from August, show Democrats outnumbering Republicans by fewer than 24,000 people.
Political parties, on the other hand, frequently have more up-to-date numbers at the county level.
DeSantis’ announcement would be a watershed moment in Florida politics. Democrats have long claimed a large voter registration lead over Republicans.
In 2008, when former President Barack Obama won Florida by almost 200,000 votes, the state had nearly 700,000 more registered Democrats than Republicans.
However, that advantage has dwindled over time as the GOP has spent substantially on expanding its presence in the state.
Meanwhile, Democrats have long complained that the state party lacks a long-term voter registration strategy.
The GOP’s significant voter registration advantage is expected to highlight the state Democratic Party’s difficulties even more.
In recent elections, Democrats have suffered a string of humiliating defeats in Florida, frequently losing important races by razor-thin margins.
The 2020 election was especially damaging for Florida Democrats. Former President Trump not only won the Sunshine State for the second time in a row, but he did it by more than 3 percentage points – a landslide by Sunshine State standards.
Democrats also lost two South Florida House seats they had won in 2018, as many voters in Miami-Dade County shifted to the right.
Manny Diaz, leader of the Florida Democratic Party, has pledged to expand the party’s voter registration efforts.
Republicans, on the other hand, aren’t showing any indications of slowing down their efforts.
According to Politico, DeSantis contributed $2 million to the state GOP’s voter registration drive in September.
