Trump’s the only candidate left in Florida’s GOP primary. Republicans are still voting

Florida’s Republican presidential primary is moving forward as a multi-million dollar coronation of former President Donald Trump after his last remaining primary opponent, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, ended her bid for the GOP nomination on Wednesday.

Haley’s exit means that, of the seven names on the Florida ballot this month, Trump is the only candidate still running for president – leaving the nearly 5 million Republicans yet to vote to decide whether it’s still worth the effort to participate in what should largely be a symbolic election.

In Miami-Dade County, despite Haley’s announcement, more than 1,300 voters showed up Wednesday to early voting centers to cast a ballot. Some may have participated in local elections in Surfside or South Miami, but the tally included Republicans like Mayra Joli, a diehard Trump voter who arrived at the Coral Gables Branch Library after Haley ended her campaign.

“I voted for Trump today even though he’s automatically going to be the one,” said Joli, a 58-year-old attorney and politician. “The only option for the Republican Party and for the country is Donald Trump.”

Even before Haley suspended her campaign, there was little doubt about Trump’s strength in Florida. Public polling has consistently shown him winning a majority of the vote in Florida, the state Republican Party has already formally endorsed his campaign and he has already racked up support from the state’s entire Republican congressional delegation.

“There’s no question that Florida was always going to go with one of its sons,” said Jamie Miller, a Republican consultant and former executive director of the Florida GOP. “And certainly once Ron DeSantis got out … Florida was always going to go for Trump.”

But Florida is still poised to play a significant role in Trump’s presidential bid. Not only is there symbolic value in Trump claiming an outsized victory in his adopted home state, but the Florida Republican primary on March 19 is expected to be one of the contests to help Trump formally clinch the GOP presidential nod.

After sweeping nearly every primary contest on super Tuesday, Trump claimed hundreds of delegates, pushing him closer to the 1,215 he needs to formally win the Republican presidential nomination. It’s unclear exactly when he’ll hit that threshold.

“Florida is and will always be Trump Country, and President Trump continues to dominate the primary in convincing fashion,” said Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump’s campaign. “As the presumptive nominee, it is time for the entire party and movement to coalesce around him to defeat Crooked Joe Biden.”

Voting has already been underway in Florida for nearly a month. The first mail ballots were sent to voters in early February, while early in-person voting kicked off on Monday.

By the time Haley dropped out Wednesday, 400,000 Republicans had already voted in Florida, most of them by mail ballot, according to state elections data. Another 4.8 million voters had yet to participate. They still can.

Though they’re no longer seeking the presidential nomination, Trump’s one-time opponents on the ballot can receive delegates. And Republican voters displeased with Trump can still send a message about a candidate facing multiple criminal indictments – just as his supporters can help him dominate his home state.

“Ever since he said he was running for president, a lot has been against him,” said Gladys Carredeguas, 30, who voted in Coral Gables Wednesday along with Joli. “It’s a point to show support for him and to show the country that no matter what they try to do to take him away, he still has the support.”

Carredeguas said that voting for Trump is “the right thing to do.”

The Republican primary alone will still cost millions of dollars to hold. Miami-Dade Deputy Supervisor of Elections Roberto Rodriguez said that the office had budgeted $7.82 million for the primary, but noted that the actual cost would likely be less, because there won’t be a Democratic nominating contest this year.

Broward County set even more aside — about $9.9 million — for the primary, according to the Supervisor of Elections Office.

There won’t be a Democratic presidential primary in Florida this year, because the state Democratic Party submitted only President Joe Biden’s name for the Democratic nomination. Under state law, if a party lists only one candidate for the primary ballot, the contest is canceled.

A spokesperson for the Florida Division of Elections did not respond to the Herald’s inquiries about the total cost of holding the primary election.