The Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) has weighed in on the soon-to-be-contentious Republican congressional primary race in Florida's 22nd District, endorsing businessman and U.S. Marine Veteran Casey Askar over the field of candidates who are all running on being the most conservative choice to represent the district.
Getting the CPAC endorsement is a big deal. A very big deal. The group, with close ties to President Donald Trump and considered the world's largest and most influential conservative organization, has for decades been committed to only supporting true conservative political candidates and has made its endorsement one of the most coveted ones in Republican politics.
In a statement on the "X" social media platform, CPAC called Askar "A proven conservative fighting for Florida."
"CPAC is proud to endorse @CaseyAskar for Congress in FL-22. A Marine and proven business leader, Casey will cut taxes and spending, secure the border, and take the fight to Washington. A proven conservative fighting for Florida," read the statement.
Askar, who is considered to be the most conservative candidate in the primary race because of his lifelong Republican status and deep Christian beliefs, thanked both the group and Chairman Matt Schlapp and his wife, Mercedes Schlapp.
Thank you, @CPAC, for supporting our campaign to keep America exceptional and prosperous, and to help President Donald Trump “Make America Great Again’ with his winning America First agenda. CPAC and the Conservative Union are the Gold standard of conservatism," stated Askar.
This primary race has boiled down to three candidates—Askar, Belinda Keiser, and Michael Carbonara.
Of the three, Askar is the only lifelong Republican and could very well be considered the true Trump conservative in the race. Both Keiser and Carbonara were registered Democrats and Independents, respectively.
Carbonara, an independent all his life, recently registered as a Republican in November 2024. Keiser was a lifelong Democrat voter and donor until 2006, when she became a registered Republican.
Keiser, who has also donated tens of thousands of dollars to Democrats since becoming a Republican, was recently hit by a 527 political organization for her deep and ongoing business ties to Communist China.
Absentee ballots have been mailed out in the district. The primary election will take place on August 18th.
