Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is going to announce on Monday that he hopes to be the 2016 GOP Presidential nominee. Bush, 62, plans to make his candidacy official during a Monday afternoon speech and rally at Miami Dade College, the nation’s largest university.
He is considered one of the favorites in a very crowded Republican pack, which already boasts 10 candidates .
In a 2016 Republican field that includes two Cuban Americans by blood — Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio — Bush is the only one who speaks Spanish at home. He referred to his Mexican-born wife, Columba, in a Mother’s Day video last month as Abue, or Granny.
The campus in Kendall is one of the many hearts of Cuban Miami, where Bush wants to introduce himself as a successful entrepreneur and politician in his own right to a country that knows him as the son and brother of two former presidents.
Back in December, the former Florida governor said he was exploring a 2016 run, an announcement that by itself had the power to kick off the campaign.
In the six months since, Bush probably has shattered a fundraising record as well as pioneering a new approach to White House campaigning. He has just completed a well-reviewed trip through Europe.
Supporters had hoped that this son of one president and brother of another would by now hold a commanding position in an unwieldy Republican field. Yet he has not broken away from the pack.
Just before leaving Europe he sat down Saturday with CNN reporter Dana Bash for an interview that aired this morning on CNN’s “State of the Union.” Bush wanted it to be clear that he felt he could now begin the process of setting himself ahead of the others in the crowed GOP field.
“I think this transition to a candidacy will allow me to be more direct about my advocacy of the leadership skills necessary for the next president to fix a few things,” Bush told CNN’s Dana Bash in Tallinn, Estonia, on Saturday.
“And as a candidate, contrary to someone who has been listening and learning along the way, I’ll offer up alternatives to the path we’re on as well, so I’ll be more specific on policy,” he said.
Before his Monday announcement Bush gained the endorsements Friday from a host of top Florida Republicans, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam and Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater.
Bush was endorsed by 11 of the state’s 17 Republican members of the U.S. House, including all three Cuban-American lawmakers from Miami.
Bush supported Attorney General Pam Bondi at a re-election campaign rally for her last year in Tampa. She returned the favor Friday and formally endorsed Bush’s candidacy for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination.
The endorsements, obtained first by the Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times, come as Bush prepares for his official announcement on Monday in Miami. With Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, emerging as a strong candidate for the Republican presidential nomination it was important that the former governor prove he can win his own state before he looked at a national battle.
With people beginning to talk up a Sunshine State showdown between Bush and Rubio, the list is a way for Bush to show off the depth and geographical range of his support.
