Who benefits from Bush's departure from presidential race?
WASHINGTON (WOFL FOX 35) - South Florida's three Cuban-American members of the House of Representatives are shifting their support for president from former candidate Jeb Bush to Marco Rubio. Republicans Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Mario Diaz-Balart and Carlos Curbelo say they are backing Rubio because he could unite the GOP.
Rubio still faces major challenges in his bid to become the GOP's presidential nominee in the November election. But having elected officials in his home state coalesce behind his candidacy could boost Rubio's odds of grabbing Florida's 99 delegates to the Republican National Convention this summer. To win the nomination, a candidate needs 1,236 delegates.
"From our days in the Florida Legislature, I've known Marco Rubio to be a principled man committed to public service," U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart said in a statement. "This commitment and his vision for the future of this great nation make him the strongest candidate for the Republican nomination."
Many Republicans, especially among elected officials, fear that Trump could be a disastrous nominee in the general election.
As Bush ended his Republican presidential bid after disappointing results in South Carolina, new fundraising reports underscored how dire his financial situation had become.
The super PAC Right to Rise USA, which raised a record $118 million last year, took in just $379,000 in January. Most of that came from a single donor: Richard DeVos, the founder of the Michigan company Amway and owner of the Orlando Magic basketball team. Devos wrote a $250,000 check on in mid-January. He also gave the same amount, at the same time, to a super PAC backing Bush rival Marco Rubio.
Right to Rise spent more than $34.5 million in January alone including $7 million in operating expenses and more than $27 million on various kinds of advertising.
Through Saturday, the super PAC had plunged some $85 million into materials backing Bush and bashing other candidates, most notably Rubio. The majority of that money — $75 million — went into television and radio commercials, advertising tracker Kantar Media's CMAG shows.
Meanwhile, Bush's official campaign raised just $1.6 million in January and was down to less than $3 million in available cash as this month began.
Information taken from the Associated Press and the News Service of Florida.