The presidential campaigns of former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will clash out in the open and behind closed doors on Friday as their fight for the future of the GOP intensifies.
The two leading presidential candidates are expected in Washington, D.C., for a pair of dueling appearances at two separate conservative confabs – the Pray Vote Stand Summit hosted by the Family Research Council and a gathering organized by the Concerned Women For America.
Meanwhile, at an Orlando hotel, the Republican Party of Florida is expected to reconsider plans to require a loyalty pledge of its presidential candidates – a brewing proxy war between Trump and DeSantis that is threatening to tear apart the GOP in the state both call home.
The collision between Trump and DeSantis on these particular battlefields over the next 24 hours is illustrative of two themes that have dominated the campaign lately: Who can capture the influential support of the evangelical community and whether anyone can loosen Trump’s grip over the GOP.
The events in the nation’s capital will provide Trump and DeSantis an opportunity to sway Christian conservative voters who make up an outsized force in two of the early nominating states – Iowa and South Carolina. Former Vice President Mike Pence and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy also are scheduled to address the Pray Vote Stand Summitt.
DeSantis has made courtship of the evangelical vote a top priority, particularly in Iowa, where evangelical influences have historically swung outcomes in the state’s caucuses. He and his wife Casey accompanied prominent Iowa evangelical Bob Vander Plaats to church last month. Before heading to Washington, DeSantis’ campaign on Thursday announced a “Faith and Family Coalition” and the endorsements of more than 70 faith leaders in the early nominating states of Iowa, New Hampshire…
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