Youth Groups Respond to DeSantis 2024 Announcement

Today, Ron DeSantis announced that he is running for President of the United States in 2024. Organizations that represent young people from across the country, including from Ron DeSantis’s home state of Florida, released the following statement:

Ron DeSantis has turned Florida into a far-right laboratory of fascism. Now, he wants to bring his hateful, regressive, and dangerous platform to the national stage. As leaders from youth groups across the country, we stand together in condemning Ron DeSantis and his campaign for President of the United States.

As Governor, Ron DeSantis has said he cares about the future of Florida, but he refuses to address the root causes of climate change that disproportionately impact young Floridians. He said he would take action after the Pulse nightclub shooting, but instead made it easier to own weapons of war and conceal carry without a permit. He said he supports freedom, but he’s persecuting teachers and signed one of the country’s most restrictive abortion bans under the shadow of darkness. He said that he wants to “protect children,” yet he’s repeatedly signed discriminatory laws that further endanger LGBTQ+ youth. And, he’s not done. In his final move as Governor before announcing his run for president, he signed legislation that removes Florida’s ‘resign to run’ law, prevents non-partisan organizations from registering voters, and restricts access to the ballot box for communities of color.

Gen Z knows who Ron DeSantis is. We understand the dangers of his far-right agenda and we’ve felt the damage he’s done to the state of Florida. We will fight to make sure that Ron DeSantis and the rest of the far right are never given an opportunity to bring their extremist policies to our communities.

In solidarity,

Voters of Tomorrow
Voters of Tomorrow — Florida
Sunrise PAC
Gen Z for Change
March For Our Lives