Peter Schorsch
Peter O’Rourke is exiting his position as executive director of the Republican Party of Florida after seven months on the job.
In a resignation letter, O’Rourke said he had completed a mission of strengthening the party and making it more transparent.
“When I was asked to join the team last year,” O’Rourke wrote, “I was charged with helping guide and ready the RPOF for the upcoming 2020 Presidential election. Since that time, I have reviewed and strengthened the Party’s policies and procedures that have enhanced accountability and transparency.”
The letter states his last day will be March 13. He said he will return to Washington, D.C. to “be with his family and return to the private sector.”
On a conference call with party leaders, Republican Party of Florida Chair Joe Gruters praised O’Rourke. He acknowledged O’Rourke came on during an “extremely difficult transition.”
Gruters said during the call that he will take on a larger role after the Session wraps; Gruters also serves as a state Senator. Additionally, former RPOF Executive Director George Riley will assist the party as the presidential election in November nears.
“As usual, I am completely laser-focused on winning,” Gruters said.
Gruters touted the party now has 90 field staff already working to get President Donald Trump reelected. As former co-chair of Trump’s 2016 Florida campaign, he noted the campaign peaked with 63 staff.
But state committee members after the call said there remain tensions between the state party and the Trump campaign. That centers on targets for voter contacts that volunteers and staffers have not been able to hit.
The call did little to shed light on the true reason the former VA Secretary is heading back to D.C., which is supposedly because of a strained relationship between Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis, who the President at one time called one of his “warriors” in Washington.
Notably, DeSantis also participated in the phone call, where he trumpeted Trump’s path to reelection.
“The national landscape, I think this is shaping up about as good for the President as it could,” DeSantis said. “If this ends up a brokered convention aumpnd they give it to [Joe] Biden over Bernie [Sanders], we can’t ask for anything better.”
Since taking office, DeSantis has leveraged his relationship with POTUS to secure hurricane funding and other needs. but some in Trump’s inner circle say he hasn’t done enough to ensure Florida stays red in 2020.
