Florida Congressman — and potential Donald Trump VP pick — Byron Donalds was in Portsmouth Friday night, headlining a New Hampshire GOP fundraiser and sharing his optimistic take on November’s election.
“If we are united, there’s nothing the crazy left can do to stop us,” Donalds told the crowd. “The race for America is on.”
The annual Amos Tuck dinner often draws national political figures — and national attention. Last year’s speaker, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.), was interrupted when a group of anti-Israel progressives rushed the stage.
This year, state GOP chair Chris Ager celebrated the party’s success, noting New Hampshire is the only East Coast state north of the Mason-Dixon line with a Republican governor and state legislature.
But Ager also reminded the 200 or so Republicans in the room that, with an open governor’s race and a razor-thin GOP majority in the House, New Hampshire is in real danger of a Democratic victory.
Gov. Chris Sununu, who’s serving his final year in office, urged the crowd to work hard to keep Republicans in control of state government. As for the prospects of Democrats winning in November, Sununu said “I can’t think of anything that keeps me up at night more.”
“We are surrounded on all sides by lunacy,” he said of the Democratic-controlled states bordering New Hampshire. “And we are the sanity.”
Sununu also reminded the crowd of the legislative successes they’ve had since he was sworn in.
“We didn’t have constitutional carry, but we’ve got it today. We didn’t have school choice, but we’ve got it today,” Sununu said. “It all comes down to the corner office.”
Sununu told NHJournal he expects a very close race.
“It’s going to be a nailbiter across the country, but my focus — and the focus of a lot of the people in this room — we’re focused on the state races,” Sununu said. “Now more than ever it’s state and local policy that’s impacting people’s lives more than anything.”
Republicans also honored Attorney General John Formella with the Meldrim Thomson Jr. “Principle Above Politics” award.
NH Attorney General John Formella receives the Meldrim Thomson Jr. “Principle Above Politics” award from Gov. Thomson’s son Tom.
“As attorney general, I’m not supposed to endorse a slate of candidates or get involved in campaigns, Formella told NHJournal. “But what I like about the Republican Party — and everybody knows that I am a Republican and was involved in politics before I took this role — is when you’re in a room like this, with Republican activists, you get a sense that you have a group of people who agree on a core set of values and principles, and that’s why they’re here.”
“They’re not here because they have an ‘R’ on a uniform, or that they’re part of a team that’s battling another team. It’s a group of people who are citizens who agree on fundamental core values.”
Donalds has been mentioned as a possible running mate for Donald Trump, though the fact they both live in Florida could potentially be problematic. And the Florida congressman has been a tireless Trump defender, even appearing in the New York courtroom last week where the former president is on trial for criminal charges.
Trump has reciprocated by suggesting Donalds would be a good candidate for Florida governor in 2026, saying “He will have many friends in the race” if he decides to run.
Fox News asked Donalds about the possibility of a 2028 White House run.
“I think it’s pretty cool. You never know. Politics is a funny business. Things can change very, very fast,” he said. “People have asked me about the future all the time. So why not go to New Hampshire, especially if they ask you to come. You better show up.”
Amos Tuck, a personal friend of Abraham Lincoln, helped form the New Hampshire Republican Party in 1856 and was a delegate to the Republican National Conventions in 1856 and 1860.
