‘Proud to have Trump’s endorsement’ post gets MAGA rep slapped with community note
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Rep. Byron Donalds was hit with a community note on X after attempting to un-distance himself from President Donald Trump, who gave him his endorsement in Florida’s nail-biter gubernatorial race.
Donalds, long a staunch proponent of Trump and MAGA, wrote on the platform that he was proud to celebrate Trump’s endorsement, and took a swing at journalists and political junkies alike for making a big deal out of his campaign’s decision to strip references to that endorsement from his website. “I am proud to have President Trump’s endorsement,” wrote Donalds. “While everyone is focused on our website, check out our policy proposals to make life more affordable for Floridians.”
But the X post quickly received a community note claiming that the Trump endorsement only reappeared after news sites reported it had been stripped from Donalds’ website, previously having been featured on the homepage on donation buttons, banners and other widgets. The site also previously featured a photo of Donalds and his wife Erika posing with Trump.
A third-term congressman, Donalds is now running against Democratic candidate David Jolly, a former member of the House, in the general election. Jolly’s bid would be an uphill battle for any Democrat in increasingly red Florida, but it has become a surprisingly competitive race as the Republican brand has suffered nationally in recent months at the hands of Trump, whose unpopular war with Iran continues to drag on and push prices for average Americans higher and higher. The state is also home to a Senate race this cycle which has Republicans sweating for the same reason.
Jolly and Donalds were in a dead heat in a poll released last week by Florida Politics, separated by just one percentage point. The close margin seen in the polling is part of a bigger picture this cycle where candidates in red-purple states like Texas, Florida, Iowa, Ohio and others are finding themselves in a rapidly worsening political environment for conservative candidates and particularly those closely aligned with the president.
With that in mind, more than half a dozen references urging users to “Chip in to Support Trump-Endorsed Byron Donalds” and labels calling him a “TRUMP-ENDORSED Proven Conservative Fighter”, or otherwise highlighting Trump’s endorsement were stripped from the website in the days following the Florida Republican primary in August. Trump’s sole references now appear on the endorsements landing page — far from hidden, but also a marked shift for a candidate who was previously running with close association with the president.
"Our campaign website reflects Byron's focus on the issues that matter most to Floridians -- affordability, insurance costs, and government transparency. He's running to be the next Governor of Florida, is proud to have President Trump's endorsement, and has real policy proposals to tackle those issues," a campaign spokesperson told ABC News.
The removal of multiple references to the president comes as Trump’s approval rating still hovers in the mid-thirties, and support for the war in Iran is plunging to new lows.
A CNN/SRSS poll this week found that three in four U.S. adults are opposed to the war, and polling has found for months that as many as seven in ten Americans do not believe Trump has a plan to get the U.S. out of the conflict.
Donalds won the August primary in a factional GOP contest that pitted him against a top ally of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Trump’s 2024 primary rival. Jay Collins has since endorsed Donalds’ bid for governor. Another candidate in the race was James Fishback, who ran an insurgent bid that was criticized by many for leaning heavily into overtly racist language against Donalds and his supporters.
A defeat of Donalds in November would be a massive blow to Republicans in Florida, who are highly organized and better funded than Democratic rivals in the state. It would also be a personal blow to the political capital of the president within the Republican Party, as Donalds’ opponents warned that he was a weak candidate for the general election and are generally looking for any opportunity to weaken Trump’s grip on the party.
n Florida, Trump’s adopted home, the president’s dominance in Republican Party politics is well-known; in 2024, he successfully won endorsements from the majority of the state’s congressional delegation, dealing a blow to DeSantis out of the gate.
Donalds is far from the most vocal Trump loyalist in D.C. but has not wavered from the president’s side publicly. He was previously floated as a candidate for speaker by a coalition of pro-Trump representatives during the ousting of Kevin McCarthy from the role in 2023.
