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DeSantis announcing candidacy Wednesday on Twitter, will be joined by Elon Musk

Ron DeSantis
Posted at 2:34 PM, May 23, 2023
and last updated 2023-05-23 15:14:09-04

Governor Ron DeSantis will announce his candidacy for president of the United States at 6 p.m. Wednesday on Twitter Spaces with Elon Musk, a DeSantis spokesperson confirmed Tuesday. It will be moderated by tech entrepreneur David Sacks.

Multiple sources also confirmed the news to ABC Action News' Forrest Saunders in Tallahassee.

DeSantis' announcement has been expected for months and sets up a primary battle with former President Donald Trump, among others in the GOP field.

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According to the Associated Press, Musk, speaking at The Wall Street Journal's CEO Summit event in London on Tuesday, seemed to confirm the news, saying DeSantis would be making "quite an announcement’ on Twitter the next day.

“The first time something like this is happening on social media,” with real-time questions and answers, he said.

He added that he is not endorsing any particular candidate at this time. Sacks is a major political donor and DeSantis booster. In 2021, he contributed just over $70,000 to the governor’s political committee, CNN reported.

An advisor for the Trump campaign commented on the latest development.

“Announcing on Twitter is perfect for Ron DeSantis. This way he doesn’t have to interact with people and the media can’t ask him any questions," the advisor told ABC News.

Just last week, DeSantis passed several pieces of legislation that he said are meant to protect children, including banning gender-affirming care and eliminating the use of pronouns in schools.