Ron DeSantis’ team had expected the recent twitter campaign announcement to be a success, but unfortunately the internet had other plans. During a donor briefing held on the following day at the Four Seasons Hotel in Miami, donors asked about the botched launch, of which the team admitted they “would have preferred that the internet had not broken, without question.” Nearly 500,000 people attempted to tune into the announcement, and crashes, awkward silences, and standby music became the result.
Donald Trump, DeSantis’ main rival, was quick to mock the disaster with a post on Truth, his social media platform. In an Instagram post, Trump shared a video mocking the event by using AI-generated voices of Musk and DeSantis. Despite the mishap, DeSantis’ team has attempted to focus on the money that was raised from donations. After the announcement, the campaign managed to raise more than $8 million within 24 hours. They’re even selling crowdsourced merchandise about the event.
DeSantis’s supporters have also been highlighting the governor’s tech savvy; while other candidates may have struggled with the pressure and media attention, not only did the team remain composed, but DeSantis has also been praised for engaging in policy conversations. The announcement aims to prove the governor’s popularity as well as wide reach over the internet.
FloridaPolitics.com was able to obtain leaked audio of the donor briefing. In it, a member of the DeSantis campaign team discussed the successful reach of the announcement, as well as the team’s tech-savvy response to the situation. A spokesperson for DeSantis has yet to comment.
