As he readies for events in Miami on Friday night and Jacksonville on Saturday, businessman Donald Trump named two leading Republicans as the chairs of his Florida presidential team: Republican Party of Florida (RPOF) Vice Chairman Joe Gruters and veteran GOP operative Susie Wiles.
Trump made the announcement on Friday as he gears up to hit Florida which is also the home base of former Gov. Jeb Bush and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio who are also running for the Republican presidential nod.
"My message is clearly resonating in Florida,” Trump said. “We have tremendous support from so many great people in the state. I am proud to watch that support grow, to see our team expand and to be leading in the polls here. Florida is truly one of the most important states in the election and it has always been a home to me. I have also invested greatly in growth and development across the state and created thousands of jobs. I look forward to spending a lot of time here and to working to ‘Make America Great Again!'"
During his years as the chairman of the Sarasota County GOP, Gruters held events featuring Trump. Gruters is currently running for the Florida House. Based in Jacksonville, Wiles is a longtime Republican operative and managed Rick Scott’s gubernatorial campaign back in 2010.
Earlier this month, Trump announced that he was naming Karen Giorno to lead his efforts in the Sunshine State. Trump owns properties and occasionally resides in Florida.
Trump has turned to a political veteran of more than 25 years to head up his team in the Sunshine State. The founder of Kingston Public Affairs, Giorno has ties to Florida, having worked as Gov. Rick Scott’s director of external affairs. Giorno has also served as Florida director of conservative group American Commitment. Before that, she worked for Meg Whitman’s gubernatorial campaign in California and in President George W. Bush’s administration, handling scheduling, advance work and other matters for the president and first lady Laura Bush.
Next month,Trump and 11 other Republican presidential hopefuls will appear at the RPOF’s Sunshine Summit in Orlando.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
