Last week it was "RUN, RANDY, RUN!", today it's "RUN, JIMMY, RUN!"
On the last day for a candidate to resign to run for office, President-elect Donald Trump on Monday endorsed Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis for Rep. Matt Gaetz's vacant congressional seat.
This is the second Florida-based endorsement Trump has made. Last week, he urged state Sen. Randy Fine to run for future national security advisor Mike Waltz's congressional seat with his emerging signature tag, "RUN, RANDY, RUN!" Fine is expected to announce his candidacy shortly.
"As your next Congressman, Jimmy would work tirelessly alongside of me to Grow our Economy, Secure our Border, Stop Migrant Crime, Strengthen our Incredible Military/Vets, Restore American Energy DOMINANCE, and Defend our always under siege Second Amendment," Trump posted to Truth Social, his conservative social media platform.
"Should he decide to enter this Race, Jimmy Patronis has my Complete and Total Endorsement," Trump continued, whose endorsement prompted state Rep. Michelle Salzman to drop out just minutes later. "RUN, JIMMY, RUN!"
Soon after, Patronis responded, "Put me to work, Mr. President! @realDonaldTrump I am here to serve."
Trump's post comes days after Patronis revealed online that he is "strongly considering" a run against a crowding Republican field for CD-1, the northwest Florida seat left open by firebrand Republican Matt Gaetz when he thought he'd be the next U.S. Attorney General.
"I am strongly considering running for Florida Congressional District 1. We’ve got an historic opportunity to fight the swamp, end lawfare and return power back into the hands of Americans," Patronis posted to X. His candidacy will create an interesting dynamic in the Sunshine State: state Sen. Joe Gruters, a leading Trump ally in the Florida Legislature, has already declared his desire to run for CFO in 2026 with an early Trump endorsement to boot.
The CFO role will soon be vacant and now Gov. Ron DeSantis will have to make a temporary appointment. And because the Governor has oft clashed with both the president-elect and Sen. Gruters, he will likely appoint a DeSantis-surrogate like Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, making it more difficult for Gruters to win the seat in '26.
Patronis' decision to run echoes his comments to The Floridian publisher Javier Manjarres last week, where he said he was "praying" about whether or not to run. With a Trump endorsement and nearly $2 million in his political committee that could be transferred to a PAC, odds are he'll fare pretty well.
