With an early May donor retreat in Palm Beach coming up with potential 2024 GOP vice presidential candidates, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has reportedly met privately with presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
The onetime allies turned bitter primary rivals met Sunday in Miami, and DeSantis has agreed to help Trump's campaign in some capacity, sources told The Washington Post.
Trump and DeSantis had not spoken since before the 2024 primary cycle, but they broke the silence between them as the Trump campaign hopes to tap into what was a strong DeSantis donor network, sources told the Post.
Unlike former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, DeSantis suspended his primary campaign after Iowa and before the New Hampshire polls closed and immediately endorsed Trump.
The reunion was orchestrated by mutual acquaintance and Florida real estate broker Steve Witkoff, who reached out to the Trump campaign to help reconnect DeSantis to Trump, according to the Post.
"It's clear to me that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance," DeSantis said in a video message. "They watched his presidency get stymied by relentless resistance, and they see Democrats using lawfare to this day to attack him."
Trump has made amends with onetime critics before, showing he does not hold grudges for Republicans who come back to join the cause.
Newsmax reached out to DeSantis communications director Bryan Griffin via email on the report and has not yet heard back.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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