Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday hit the campaign trail to support U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, the Republican nominee to replace him, but later in the day he also urged GOP voters not to be lethargic about heading to the polls.
“For Republicans, I don’t necessarily want to be the bearer of bad news, but I don’t think the turnout has been as strong as we would like to see. I think people need to get out and vote,” DeSantis told reporters at an event in Crystal River to highlight environmental grant funds he was awarding throughout the state.
DeSantis was asked about the early voting numbers for Republicans, which show GOP voters have cast more ballots than Democrats through in-person early voting and through the mail, but the lead is smaller than it was at this time in the last midterm election in 2022. As of Tuesday afternoon, Republicans had cast more than 1.4 million votes, or nearly 35,000 more than Democrats had cast, according to state data.
He said he doesn’t think Republican parents in their 30s and 40s are turning out in the same numbers as they did for his reelection because the urgency isn’t the same when the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic was still fresh.
“Four years ago they were all coming out because we were doing parents’ rights, we were fighting Disney on gender insanity … keeping schools open during COVID, making sure the kids didn’t have to wear masks – all these things were so sensitive for parents that I think people in that age group really turned out well,” DeSantis said. “Because of the changes in the overall atmospherics I think you’ve seen some of them have withdrawn from being involved in the political or electoral process to a certain extent. Now that can change between now and the election, but I definitely think Republicans have some work to do.”
Hours earlier, DeSantis was in Brooksville with Donalds, recounting his highlights during his two terms as governor and warning voters the Democratic nominee, former U.S. Rep. David Jolly, was opposed to most of it. He especially hit on his approach to COVID-19, reopening the state earlier than other states, ensuring schools were open and children weren’t forced to wear masks.
“Byron’s running against a guy who opposed us every step of the way on having Florida opened,” DeSantis said. “(Donalds) has made it very clear that Florida did it right, especially during COVID when his opponent would have done precisely the opposite.”
Even in his speech during the Donalds rally, though, DeSantis acknowledged the dynamics of the current election cycle aren’t what they were in 2022. Inflation has hit household finances hard, but frustration with the national economy shouldn’t discourage Republicans from getting to the polls, especially because they could vote for Amendment 3, the property tax cut DeSantis has championed.
“There’s a lot of stuff going on in the world, there’s a lot of stuff going on in Washington, D.C. A lot of people aren’t happy with all that, but don’t let that color your opportunity to keep things going here,” DeSantis said. “Don’t let it cause you to sit on the sidelines and not go vote to reduce your property taxes on Amendment 3.”
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This article appears in Oct. 22 – 28, 2026.
