Washington — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' frustrating start to the 2024 presidential election prompted reminders of what has come to be known as the "Florida curse."
DeSantis' announcement of the start of his 2024 presidential campaign came on Twitter, but a series of technical difficulties led to a delay of about 22 minutes, then the broadcast was interrupted for a few minutes before the event was restarted from a different account, which led to a decline in the number of participants in the live streaming event.
The incident was a major blow to DeSantis' campaign, as President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump mocked the technological failure of the young candidate, whom many observers see as the Republican Party's hope of returning to the White House, ending Trump's legacy and defeating Biden electorally.
Curse of Florida
The Florida curse, in short, means the inability of any candidate from the state throughout American history to win the office of president of the United States. Linked to Florida's curse is that it has become a favorite retirement seat for U.S. presidents throughout its history, compared to any other state.
In the nearly 180 years since Florida joined the U.S. Union, Florida has not produced a president, nor was one born within its borders, making it the only state — among the country's 10 most populous — that hasn't sent anyone to the White House.
Florida is the third most populous U.S. state and its number of representatives in the Electoral College after California and Texas, and ahead of New York.
Commentators say it's easy to win office in a state of more than 22 million people, and it takes to campaign in a limited number of state cities, villages and counties, but it's very different from racking nationwide campaigns in 50 states different from Florida.
Ohio, for example, a state smaller than Florida, sent eight of its politicians to the White House, Texas, which joined the American Union a year after Florida joined, sent three U.S. presidents, and even a small state like Hawaii sent a president of the White House, where former President Barack Obama was born.
Future fears
Despite Florida's economic, tourism, and development successes, where its population has swelled and attracted many immigrants, the state's politicians have succeeded domestically and failed nationally.
In the 2016 election, two Florida politicians came close to winning the White House, when it fielded two leading Republican candidates: former Governor Jeb Bush and Senator Marco Rubio.
Bush started as the frontrunner to win the Republican nomination, but the sudden and unexpected rise of Trump, who comes from New York, has dashed the state's dreams in this round.
After his term ended in January 2021, Trump himself moved to Florida, where he changed his official residence from Manhattan, New York, to Palm Beach, Florida.
With DeSantis and Trump running together in the 2024 election, both from Florida, the state may move closer to eliminating its curse, or its curse confirmed if President Joe Biden wins a second term.