“The sluggish return to normalcy in the wake of the pandemic is a major factor in voter satisfaction for many incumbent Democrats,” said Jesse Hunt, director of communications for the Republican Governors Association.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Florida Republican who is on the ballot this year and considered a potential 2024 presidential nominee, welcomed the Democratic governors’ caucus to his state by selling Lockdown Libs Tour T-shirts.
“Quarantine Democrats can’t get enough of Florida’s freedom!” read the fundraising letter.
Democratic gubernatorial candidates from Florida, Iowa, South Carolina, Arizona, Arkansas, Ohio and Pennsylvania attended the retreat., as did the governors of Maine, New York, Kentucky, and Rhode Island.. Stacey Abrams, who is running for governor of Georgia for the second time, also showed up and performed at a nearby donor’s house, which attendees said hosted the reception.
There are 20 states with incumbent Republican governors on the ballot this fall, and Democrats from those states have said they hope public outrage against those responsible can get around both sides.
Despite the national climate, the card does offer Democrats two good chances of success: in Maryland and Massachusetts, where popular anti-Trump Republican governors no longer vote in Democratic-majority states.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan could not run for re-election under term limits, and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker refused to run for another term as pro-Trump forces threatened to hold a primary.
The Republican struggle is also creating instability for the party in Georgia, where Gov. Brian Kemp is facing a major challenge from former Senator David Purdue, and in Arizona, where Mr. Trump has feuded with outgoing Gov. Doug Ducey.