Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned about party’s prospects heading into the next midterm cycle, arguing that Republicans cannot assume Donald Trump’s voters will automatically turn out when the president’s name is not on the ballot.
DeSantis made the case during a Friday appearance on “Fox & Friends,” when he described a growing challenge inside the party: a massive block of Trump-aligned voters who participate enthusiastically when the president is running, but often sit out other elections.
He told the hosts that this voting pattern remained one of the biggest risks for the GOP in 2026.
“I think Republicans have an issue that Donald Trump has created a big pool of voters, but some of them are unique to him, right?” he began during the segment.
He argued that these voters reliably show up for Trump and tend to support Republicans down the ballot when he is on it, but that “if he’s not on the ballot, some of them don’t vote,” a pattern he said had repeated itself in prior midterm years.
He pointed to the recent Tennessee special election between Democrat Aftyn Behn and Republican Matt Van Epps, noting that although Van Epps won comfortably in a deeply conservative state, the nine point margin was narrower than many expected.
Some within the party, he said, had taken the outcome as another sign that turnout dynamics could pose problems.
DeSantis’ warning came as Republicans worked to defend their narrow congressional advantages heading into 2026.
He reminded viewers that midterms inherently favor the opposition party. “In an off year midterm, the party in power’s voters tend to be more complacent,” he said. “The party out of power, they get upset, right? That’s just the nature of midterms.”
He noted that Republicans shouldn’t assume they can automatically win in districts that strongly supported Trump in the last presidential election.
Instead, he insisted the party had to recognize that many of those voters came out specifically for Trump.
“You can overcome that,” he said, pointing to his own 2022 reelection as evidence that strong results could shift turnout patterns.
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From his perspective, the way to hold Trump’s voter base was by delivering unmistakable policy contrasts with Democrats.
“I just think you [got to] be bold. I think you [got to] be strong,” he said, adding that the GOP must campaign under a “banner of bold colors, not pale pastels.”
He argued that voters respond when leaders push clearly defined agendas and when they demonstrate they are willing to confront the left on major issues. Florida’s record in 2022, he said, was built on sharp policy differences.
“Think about why we’ve been able to win big in Florida. It’s because there’s a very sharp contrast to what we’re doing and what the liberal Democrats stand for,” the governor remarked.
He claimed that his administration had succeeded by “sticking it to the left every single day and delivering big victories.”
While talking about national strategy, DeSantis also highlighted issues with Congress, suggesting many Americans felt Republican lawmakers had not taken enough decisive action since late summer.
“One of the frustrations with the Congress is, what have they done since August?” he asked.
DeSantis won re election by more than a million and a half votes in 2022, flipping four Democrat held House districts along the way.
Florida Republicans captured 20 of the state’s 28 House seats, something he attributed to a record built on results.
“We won by a million and a half votes, 20 points, the biggest Republican win ever,” he said. He attributed that success to “results and substance” rather than rhetoric.
DeSantis’ remarks this week veered toward immigration issues after the release of a report by Amnesty International that described conditions inside a migrant detention center in the Florida Everglades known as “Alligator Alcatraz.”
The report focused heavily on a 2 by 2 foot cage known as “the box,” which the group claimed could amount to torture.
According to the 61 page document, the box was described as a cramped space where detainees could be kept on the ground for hours under extreme heat, insect exposure, and the elements.
The report contended that the conditions “would likely cause severe physical and psychological pain and suffering,” and argued that using the box as punishment “constitutes torture.”
Four men told Amnesty they had been held in the box, and the organization said it compiled the allegations during a September visit to the facility.
Its findings also included claims of unsanitary conditions such as overflowing toilets that leaked into areas where people slept, minimal access to showers, constant overhead lighting, and poor quality food and water.
The group also stated that detainees were routinely shackled for prolonged periods both inside the facility and while being transported between locations.
Amnesty argued that such practices amounted to cruel and degrading treatment and could qualify as torture under international standards.
The report further noted overcrowding, limited medical access, delayed intake processes, and extensive use of extended solitary confinement.
Amnesty called on the federal government to stop criminalizing immigration violations, end the use of state run facilities for immigration custody, investigate all deaths and abuse allegations, and adhere to human rights standards.
DeSantis’ office issued a stinging rebuttal, accusing the organization of pushing a politically motivated narrative.
“This ‘report’ is nothing more than a politically motivated attack. None of these fabrications are true. In fact, running these allegations without any evidence whatsoever could jeopardize the safety and security of our staff and those being housed at Alligator Alcatraz,” his office said.
In a separate appearance on FOX Business’ “Varney & Co.” on Friday, DeSantis outlined his next steps for eliminating property taxes on primary homes in Florida.
He argued that residents were being squeezed by rapidly rising local taxes. “People are being pinched across the economy in a lot of things,” he said. “We’re doing fine at the state [level], but the local property taxes are hurting people.”
He accused local governments of overspending, insisting they had become too reliant on rising property assessments.
“The reality is these local governments have overspent, and people are paying more and more for that. And at some point it’s like, when is enough, enough?” he commented.
DeSantis said the long term goal was to abolish property taxes entirely for primary residences, something no state has done while also maintaining no income tax.
He noted that most property tax revenue in Florida comes from nonresidents, second homes, and commercial property, representing roughly 30 percent of total collections.
DeSantis added that the pandemic era population boom had inflated home values, causing many Floridians to be hit with massive tax increases.
“Think about it. Can you have a situation where every five or six years you’re increasing budgets 50, 60 percent?” the Florida lawmaker asked.
He argued that soaring assessments had left families stuck with unmanageable bills. He also questioned how someone could buy a home for $350,000 only to be told four years later it was suddenly worth a million dollars, requiring far higher taxes, saying “it’s not right.”
