While some Republicans have walked back their endorsements of presidential candidate Donald Trump in recent days, a Florida congressman threw his support to the GOP’s presumptive candidate.
Congressman Ted Yoho endorsed Trump on Saturday, praising the celebrity businessman as a political outsider like himself.
“I am excited to stand not just behind the American people’s choice for the next president of the United States of America but my personal choice: Mr. Donald Trump,” Yoho announced in his endorsement.
The North Florida Republican praised Trump as a “clear leader and visionary” whose background goes far beyond politics, noting his background in entertainment and business.
“When an outsider like Mr. Trump wins against all odds and against the political establishment machine, it exemplifies his political savvy and business acumen,” Yoho insisted. “Americans roots and love to see the underdog given a chance and eventually win.”
Yoho, a large-animal veterinarian based out of Gainesville, pulled off one of the biggest upsets in Florida political history when he beat 24 year incumbent Cliff Stearns in the Republican primary back in 2012, something the congressman noted in his endorsement of Trump. During his time in Washington, Yoho has become a favorite of the tea party movement for challenging John Boehner’s reelection as speaker of the House.
Trump won the Florida primary on March 15, routing Marco Rubio by carrying 66 of the 67 counties in the Sunshine State. On Saturday, Trump held a campaign event in Tampa as he looks ahead to November when Florida is expected to be the largest electoral battleground.
Yoho wasn’t the only endorsement from Florida that Trump reeled in over the weekend. The Florida Federation of Republican Women also threw its support behind Trump, endorsing the presumptive Republican presidential candidate on Saturday.