Will Ivanka Trump replace Marco Rubio to make her Senate debut in Florida? Rumors swirl after she buys plot
Ivanka Trump is often considered the next big thing from the Trump family as the entrepreneur-politician is known to harbor high political ambitions. However, the defeat of President Donald Trump in this year’s presidential election means her career progress on the political arena has received a setback and she needs to start all over again. Could the 39-year-old next aim for an elected office in Florida, the state where she has reportedly purchased a plot of land?
The Sunshine State might offer Ivanka, a mother of three, an opening in the race for Senate due in two years from now. Incumbent Marco Rubio, who was a sharp critic of Trump who he had challenged in the race for the White House in 2016 and turned into his ally of late, will be facing re-election in 2022 but could face a formidable challenge from the current first daughter to pave way for her rise.
“Assuming she’s not interested in a low-profile political office, that would leave the United States Senate as a possibility,” Adam C Smith, former Tampa Bay Times political editor and now a consultant with Mercury Public Affairs, was quoted as saying by CNN.
“Marco Rubio is up for re-election in 2022 and is expected to run again. But I wouldn't think Rubio would deter her if she wanted to run. The last time Marco Rubio ran against a Trump in Florida, in the 2016 presidential primary, Rubio was crushed by 19 percentage points. I think she’d be the immediate frontrunner if she ran for US Senate against Rubio, given her father’s popularity in the Sunshine State,” Smith added.
Did Ivanka and Kushner buy plot to consolidate base?
Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, who has also served as Trump’s senior adviser, have bought a $30 million-plus lot of land on Miami’s ultra-rich and high-security Indian Creek Island — known as the “Billionaire’s Bunker” — Page Six said in an exclusive report. The senior Trump also owns a resort in Mar-a-Lago in Florida, a politically crucial state, which the president won by less than four percentage points after a lot of speculation over Joe Biden’s win.
Ivanka, like her father, spent the majority of her life in New York and the Mar-a-Lago resort was used as a vacation home. It is being speculated that Ivanka could use the next two years to consolidate her base in Florida and understand the issues that the state faces in order to make a political mark. The Trumps might not find it convenient to go back to New York to revive their political fortune, thanks to the fact that it is a Democratic-dominated state and financial allegations.
However, for Ivanka to emerge as Florida’s governor, she would have to wait for seven years — the time that Florida’s constitution requires a resident to spend in the state before taking up a public office there.
Ivanka, however, is not the only member of the Trump family who could cover the distance to make a political mark. Donald Trump Jr, the oldest of Trump’s five children who also takes a lead role in catering to his father’s conservative base, is also seen as one who could make a serious bid to enter politics. Lara Trump, the wife of Trump’s second son Eric, has also indicated running for a Senate seat from her home state North Carolina in 2022.