Ron DeSantis presidential campaign staff, 2024
Date: November 5, 2024  |
2024 • 2020 • 2016 |
Last updated September 19, 2023.
This page contains a select list of Ron DeSantis' (R) national campaign staff. Staff are presented alongside their positions in the campaign, their most recent positions prior to the campaign, and their Twitter handles.
Click on the links below to navigate:
- Campaign staff in context
- Overview of Ron DeSantis' campaign
- National staff
- State staff
- DeSantis in the news
Know of any staff we missed? Please email us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Visit Presidential election key staffers, 2024 to see our coverage of campaign staff on other campaigns.
Here are links to the candidates' staff pages:
- Joe Biden (D)
- Dean Phillips (D)
- Marianne Williamson (D)
- Ryan Binkley (R)
- Chris Christie (R)
- Ron DeSantis (R)
- Nikki Haley (R)
- Asa Hutchinson (R)
- Vivek Ramaswamy (R)
- Donald Trump (R)
Here are the links to staff pages for candidates who withdrew from the Democratic or Republican primaries:
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (D) (Kennedy withdrew from the Democratic primary and announced an independent presidential run on October 9, 2023.)
- Doug Burgum (R) (Burgum withdrew from the Republican primary on December 4, 2023.)
- Larry Elder (R) (Elder withdrew from the Republican primary on October 26, 2023.)
- Will Hurd (R) (Hurd withdrew from the Republican primary on October 9, 2023.)
- Perry Johnson (R) (Johnson withdrew from the Republican primary on October 20, 2023.)
- Mike Pence (R) (Pence withdrew from the Republican primary on October 28, 2023.)
- Tim Scott (R) (Scott withdrew from the Republican primary on November 12, 2023.)
- Corey Stapleton (R) (Stapleton withdrew from the Republican primary on October 13, 2023.)
- Francis Suarez (R) (Suarez withdrew from the Republican primary on August 29, 2023.)
Campaign staff in context
Campaign staff plays an important role in the presidential primaries. The makeup of a candidate's staff can signal the strength of their support from influential party activists and whether they are aligning with a particular faction or group within the party. Eric Appleman of Democracy in Action describes candidates' efforts to hire staffers as a "race for talent, both nationally and in key early states." He adds, "The goal is to assemble a team of top talent that can work together effectively to mobilize resources, boost the candidate and his or her message, and ultimately secure the party's nomination."[1]
Presidential candidates will typically have a national staff, which is overseen by a campaign manager and assisted by political consultants, senior advisors, professional polling firms, and key stakeholders such as interest group leaders and major financial supporters. They also build organizations in individual states that are overseen by state directors and staffed by party activists and political professionals well-versed in the particular politics of the area. Candidates often appoint elected officials and other important figures in their party's coalition as chairs of their national campaign and state-level campaigns.[1]
DeSantis campaign overview
- See also: Ron DeSantis presidential campaign, 2024
Ron DeSantis (R) is the governor of Florida. He has served in the position since 2019. DeSantis announced his candidacy for the 2024 presidential election on May 24, 2023.[2]
In his campaign announcement, DeSantis said he would reduce government spending and inflation, increase security at the U.S.-Mexico border, support funding for law enforcement, increase domestic energy production, reduce the authority of the administrative state, and "re-establish integrity in our institutions" by reducing focus on "matters not central to the mission, whether it's global warming or gender ideology and pronouns." DeSantis highlighted his record as governor of Florida, saying, "In Florida we proved it could be done. We chose facts over fear, education over indoctrination, law and order over rioting and disorder. We held the line."[3]
Before serving as governor, DeSantis represented Florida's 6th congressional district in the U.S. House from 2012 to 2018. Click here to read more about DeSantis' biography.
National staff
The table below shows a partial list of national campaign staff members, including the campaign manager, senior advisors, political directors, communications directors, field directors, and the national press secretary. They are presented alongside their positions in the campaign, their most recent positions prior to the campaign, and their Twitter handles. To recommend additions, please email us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
- See also: Presidential election campaign managers and key staffers, 2024
| Ron DeSantis presidential campaign national staff, 2024 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Staff | Position | Prior experience | Twitter handle |
| James Uthmeier[4] | Campaign manager | Chief of staff, DeSantis' gubernatorial office | @JamesUthmeierFL |
| Dustin Carmack[5] | Policy director | Research fellow, Heritage Foundation | @DustinCarmack |
| Ryan Tyson[5] | Senior advisor | President and CEO, The Tyson Group | @ryan_tyson |
| Jason Johnson[5] | Senior advisor | Advisor, Texas Governor Greg Abott (R) | @jasonsjohnson |
| Generra Peck[5][4] | Senior advisor | Campaign manager, DeSantis' 2022 gubernatorial campaign | @GenerraPeck |
| Bryan Griffin[5] | Press secretary | Press secretary, DeSantis' gubernatorial office | @BryanDGriffin |
| Lauren Lofstrom[5] | Finance director | Finance director, Ted Cruz's (R) 2016 presidential campaign | @LofstromLauren |
State staff
The table below shows state-level directors and communications directors in early primary states. They are presented alongside their positions in the campaign, their most recent positions prior to the campaign, and their Twitter handles. States are presented in order of their elections or caucuses. For a list of primary election or caucus dates by state, click here. To recommend additions, please email us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
| Ron DeSantis presidential campaign state staff, 2024 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Staff | State | Position | Prior experience | Twitter handle |
| Sophie Crowell[6] | Iowa | State director | Campaign manager, Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) 2022 re-election campaign | @sophie_crowell |
Notable staff departures
The list below shows notable staff departures found in media reports.
| Ron DeSantis presidential campaign staff, 2024 (Departures) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Staff | Previous position | Departure date | New position |
| David Abrams[5] | Communications director | July 14, 2023 | DeSantis affiliated political nonprofit |
| Tucker Obenshain[7] | External affairs director | July 14, 2023 | DeSantis affiliated political nonprofit |
DeSantis in the news
This section features up to five recent news stories about DeSantis and his presidential campaign. For a complete timeline of DeSantis' campaign activity, click here.
- January 3, 2024: DeSantis campaigned in Waukee, Iowa.[8]
- January 2, 2024: DeSantis participated in a town hall hosted by KEYC News Now in Iowa.[9]
- December 31, 2023: DeSantis campaigned at the Never Back Down New Year's Eve Party in West Des Moines, Iowa.[10]
- December 29, 2023:
- DeSantis campaigned in Davenport, Iowa.[10]
- DeSantis campaigned in Elkader, Iowa.[10]
- December 28, 2023:
- DeSantis campaigned in Marion, Iowa.[10]
- DeSantis campaigned in Ankeny, Iowa.[11]
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Democracy in Action, "Building Campaign Organizations (2019)," accessed May 10, 2019
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Statement of Organization," accessed May 24, 2023
- ↑ Twitter, "David Sacks on May 24, 2023," accessed May 30, 2023
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 NBC News, "Ron DeSantis replaces his campaign manager as he reboots his presidential bid," August 8, 2023
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 New York Post, "Ron DeSantis presidential campaign team unveiled — including ex-Trump staffer Dustin Carmack," May 24, 2023
- ↑ Politico, "An insider’s guide to who’s wired — and who’s not — in Iowa," July 24, 2023
- ↑ Politico, "Two senior DeSantis advisers are leaving to help run outside effort," July 14, 2023
- ↑ Des Moines Register, "See photos as Ron DeSantis campaigns for president in Waukee," January 3, 2024
- ↑ KEYC News Now, "Town Hall with Republican Presidential Candidate Ron DeSantis," January 2, 2024
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Quad City Times, "Where in Iowa will presidential candidates be this week? Here's your guide," December 27, 2023
- ↑ DeSantis, "DeSantis Returns to Campaign Trail in Iowa, Blasts Haley for Civil War Gaffe," December 28, 2023
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