On Friday, state Rep. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill, the chairman of the Republican Party of Florida (RPOF), announced two more presidential candidates -- U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and businesswoman Carly Fiorina -- will attend the RPOF’s Sunshine Summit in Orlando next month.
“The addition of Sen. Ted Cruz and Carly Fiorina to the list of presidential candidates speaking at the Sunshine Summit is further proof that this is the most significant event in Florida politics this fall,” Ingoglia said. “We look forward to them firing up the grassroots as we build the momentum to deliver our 29 electoral votes to the Republican nominee in 2016.”
With Cruz and Fiornia on board, the event now features 12 presidential candidates with former Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana , Gov. John Kasich of Ohio, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania and businessman Donald Trump having already been announced as speakers.
A favorite of conservatives and the tea party movement, Cruz has energized the base by showig no hesitation on attacking the GOP establishment in Washington. Cruz has focused on areas outside of traditional early primary and caucus states like Iowa and New Hampshire, targeting states in the South which will vote in the “SEC primary” in early March. There are signs that Cruz will have a strong enough war chest to carry on his campaign after the early states as he announced on Thursday night that his team had raised $26.5 million over the last six months.
“We are thrilled to see a grassroots wave of support for our campaign gaining momentum all over the country,” Cruz said. “Not only are we seeing a surge of new donors and recurring donors to our campaign, but also continued growth of our organizations in the early states and all across the country. Americans are ready for real change, and I am ready to stand with them to take on the Washington cartel and return power to the American people. We have both the financial and organizational resources to compete for the long haul and to take our optimistic message all across the country.”
Fiorina started at the back of the pack but she has shone in the first debates. Stuck in the first undercard debate, Fiorina shone and was with the top tier candidates in the second one. Stressing her business credentials and the fact she’s never held political office, Fiorina hasn’t hesitated in going after former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the favorite for the Democratic nomination.
While the event doesn’t have the high-profile straw poll of past RPOF presidential contest events, the stakes are high. Last month, the RPOF voted on a new rule ensuring GOP presidential hopefuls can appear on March's presidential primary ballot by appearing at the Sunshine Summit, paying a fee or filing a petition and gathering signatures to make the ballot.
The RPOF noted on Friday that there will be additional speakers announced next week. Dr. Ben Carson, former Gov. Jim Gilmore of Virginia and former Gov. George Pataki have yet to be announced as speaking at the Sunshine Summit.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
