- Ron DeSantis was away in Ohio on his book tour when Fort Lauderdale flooded this week.
- “Governor DeSantis has not yet called. I’m not sure what’s going on,” the mayor of Fort Lauderdale said.
- DeSantis previously visited cities affected by Hurricane Ian to talk about relief efforts.
Fort Lauderdale’s mayor said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had not called him to check in on the city after it was severely flooded this week due to record-breaking rains.
In a press conference on Thursday, Mayor Dean Trantalis, a member of the Democratic party, gave updates on the flood that had shut down major roads in the city and turned the local airport into a lake.
Reporter Chris Nelson asked Trantalis if he had spoken to DeSantis, to which Trantalis replied: “Governor DeSantis has not yet called.”
—Chris Nelson 🇺🇸 🏝 (@ReOpenChris) April 13, 2023
“I’m not sure what’s going on, but I’m sure he’s very interested in what’s going on here, and we’re happy to work with his office,” Trantalis said.
He added that the state agencies have been “very helpful” in working with the city to recover from the floods.
DeSantis was in Ohio for a GOP event on Thursday, per NBC News. The event is part of his national tour for his book “The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival.”
Although he had not officially declared a 2024 bid, DeSantis’ book tour is widely regarded as a precursor to his presidential run. An email from the Trump campaign on Monday separately accused DeSantis of not formally declaring a 2024 run and using his governor’s salary to fund unofficial campaign travels like his book tour.
Despite being out of Florida, DeSantis acknowledged the floods back home by declaring a state of emergency for Broward County on his Twitter page on Thursday.
—Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) April 13, 2023
DeSantis has previously visited other disaster zones. In October, DeSantis visited Arcadia to speak about the state’s relief efforts after Hurricane Ian made landfall in South Florida. In March, DeSantis was also in Fort Myers to talk about hurricane recovery efforts.
Representatives for DeSantis and Trantalis did not immediately respond to Insider’s requests for comment sent outside regular business hours.
