Miami’s popular Republican Mayor Francis Suarez has held private court with wealthy political financiers as he considers challenging former President Donald Trump for the GOP nomination in 2024, according to party fundraisers and donors familiar with the matter.
Suarez told reporters on Friday that he is still thinking about running for president. Since the end of last year, Suarez has laid the groundwork for a possible run in the White House. He recently met with the likes of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink and former Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, the man explained.
Suarez could also run for Florida governor, a person close to the mayor told CNBC. The people who spoke to CNBC declined to be named because the discussions were private. Suarez won the mayoralty in 2017 with 86% of the vote and was re-elected in 2021 with 78% of the vote. If Suarez enters the presidential primary, he follows other popular mayors who are longshots for the White House.
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg was first elected mayor of South Bend, Indiana with 74% of the vote in 2011. He won again in 2015 with more than 80% of the vote before resigning and launching a presidential campaign and losing to President Joe Biden. in the 2020 Democratic primary.
If Suarez jumps to the 2024 Republican presidential primary, polls show he will be a major underdog contender when he faces a familiar face: Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. A Fox News poll taken in February showed Suarez with no support among participants when asked who they would like to see as the Republican presidential nominee.
Former President Donald Trump, who is launching his own bid for the White House, and DeSantis, lead the polls with 43% and 28% of the vote. DeSantis has not announced a presidential candidate. The first Republican primary debate is scheduled for August in the state of Wisconsin.
Days before the Fox News poll was released, Suarez was in Boston in late February holding a meeting with the likes of Kraft. He was also part of a separate gathering with over two dozen political heavyweights, including former Massachusetts Republican Governor Charlie Baker, two people with direct knowledge of the meetings said.
Suarez did not return a request for comment. Spokesmen for Kraft, Fink, Schwarzman and Baker, who was recently named NCAA president, also did not return requests for comment.
Kraft has been close to Trump for years, but he has supported a mix of Democrats and Republicans over the years, according to data from nonpartisan campaign finance watchdog OpenSecrets. The billionaire and New England Patriots owner is part of a group of business leaders advising Trump on how to restart the economy in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic.
At a lunch featuring Baker, the Miami mayor noted to attendees that he is still considering running for president and targeting DeSantis, saying the Florida governor is all about playing politics, while Suarez is about acting for his constituents, according to those with direct knowledge. from the meeting.
A clear rift between DeSantis and Suarez could happen if they both run for president in 2024.
The Washington Post reported in January that DeSantis and Suarez have not spoken since the mayor came down with Covid-19 in 2020. The lack of conversation between the two is because Suarez in 2021 ripped DeSantis and key state officials for not allowing cities like Miami. go ahead with the Covid mask mandate.
Both Suarez and DeSantis are subject to term limits and cannot seek re-election. Suarez’s term ends in 2025, while DeSantis’ official last day as governor is in 2027. Florida state law does not allow governors to run for re-election after winning two consecutive four-year terms. The mayor of Miami can only serve two four-year terms.
Suarez was also in New York in February meeting with GOP donors and told several people he was “seriously considering it [a run for president]”According to donors who met with Suarez. The mayor of Miami will be back in New York in April holding similar meetings, the fundraisers explained.
Suarez previously met with Schwarzman and Fink, people close to the mayor said. Blackstone and BlackRock each have offices in Miami. Representatives for both companies did not return requests for comment.
Schwarzman donated $36 million to Republican causes during the 2022 election cycle, according to OpenSecrets. Schwarzman, who donated millions to try to get Trump re-elected in 2020, said he would not help the former president in the 2024 GOP primary.
Fink and BlackRock have become the face of the Republican anti-ESG movement. Under DeSantis’ leadership, Florida has attracted $2 billion in assets managed by BlackRock as the wealth management firm embraces ESG investment practices.
Although records show Fink has made the most campaign contributions to Democrats, as head of the world’s largest asset manager, he has worked closely with presidents of both parties. Fink was on Trump’s initial business council and was in contact with the Trump White House as the pandemic spread across the United States.