For the second year in a row, Vice President Mike Pence will be making an appearance at the Republican Party of Florida’s (RPOF) annual Statesman Dinner. Pence will headline the annual fundraiser in Orlando next month, the party announced Monday morning.
The dinner fundraising event will be held at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort on Nov. 2.
RPOF Chairman Blaise Ingoglia said the party was excited to welcome Pence once more to Florida, a state which turned red for the party -- and for President Donald Trump and VP Pence -- last November.
“The RPOF is excited to welcome Vice President Mike Pence back as our keynote speaker for this year’s Statesman’s Dinner,” Ingoglia, who serves in the state House, said. “Florida was crucial in winning the 2016 election and Vice President Pence was instrumental in rallying the base of our great state. We look forward to yet another enthusiastic message from our VP touting our president’s agenda of prosperity, while catapulting us to victory in 2018.”
Tickets for the dinner begin at $100 for college Republicans and prices increase based on party member duties. Republican Executive Committee members can snag tickets for $150 a head while general admission costs $200.
Trump and the GOP have sent Pence to help rally support for the party, which is already working overtime to prevent Democrats from making gains in the 2018 midterm elections.
Pence is making his rounds in other parts of the country to help out other state Republican parties as well. Pence headlined the Tennessee Republican Party’s annual fundraiser over the summer and embarked on a fundraising tour in California earlier this month.
Pence will not only raise money for the Republican Party, but he will also be using the multi-city, multi-state stops to raise cash for Trump’s reelection efforts for 2020.
The former Indiana governor is well-versed in Republican party politics, especially fundraising. Pence served for 12 years in Congress, rising to become part of the GOP's leadership,
Not only does Pence have strong fundraising capabilities, he also has a star power which could help Republicans build up a rapport with party faithful and general voters Pence brought over 1,400 people to an Iowa statesman dinner earlier this summer. Last year he headlined the RPOF’s 2016 Victory Dinner in Tampa when he was a vice presidential candidate.
Florida helped tipped the scales in favor of the GOP last November when Trump took a plurality of the state’s vote, gathering 49 percent while Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton pulled 47.8 percent.
Pence has since then frequently appeared in Florida, most recently making a trip to Orlando earlier this month to discuss hurricane relief efforts for the victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
