Trump wants a primary challenge to Florida GOP Rep. Laurel Lee: ‘Please step forward’
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – While in Florida over the weekend, former President Donald Trump said he wants a primary challenger to Republican Rep. Laurel Lee, who represents the state’s 15th Congressional District.
“Any great MAGA Republicans looking to run against Laurel Lee in Florida’s 15th Congressional District?” Trump posted on Truth Social on Sunday. “IF SO, PLEASE STEP FORWARD!”
Trump was at his Florida gulf club Sunday night to receive two championship trophies.
Lee’s district was previously represented by Republican Scott Franklin. In 2022, Lee competed in a hotly contested GOP primary for the 15th district. She ultimately won in the primary with 41.5% of the vote, the closest competitor to her being Kelli Stargel, who finished with 27.8%. Stargel was previously a state senator.
In the 2022 general election, Lee faced off against Democrat Alan Cohn. The district, located just east of the Tampa Bay area, voted for Lee by a margin of 58.5% to 41.5%.
As of late-March, the primary for District 15 is relatively empty: Lee is the only Republican filed thus far, and the only Democrat is Kris Fitzgerald.
While Trump has called for a “MAGA” challenger to Lee, time is running out for a challenge to take place. According to the Florida Division of Elections, the qualifying period for U.S. representative is April 22-26, just a month away.
Notably, Lee had endorsed Gov. Ron DeSantis in the 2024 GOP presidential primary, bucking the vast swath of Florida’s D.C. GOP delegation backing Trump. She had been DeSantis’ secretary of state from 2019 to 2022.
According to the conservative organization Heritage Action, Lee has a 72% score, a tally meant to grade how “conservative” federal officials are.
For comparison, some of the most conservative members of Congress from Florida include Kat Cammack, Cory Mills and Bill Posey, all of which have 100% scores. Byron Donalds, Anna Paulina Luna, have 98% scores. Brian Mast, Aaron Bean and Gus Bilirakis are examples of other congressional members scoring above a 90%.
