During the Republican presidential debate in Miami, Donald Trump confirmed that Dr. Ben Carson, the retired neurosurgeon and recent presidential dropout, will endorse the billionaire businessman’s campaign at Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach tomorrow, just days before the Sunshine State’s winner-take-all primary.
Carson ended his own campaign last week, saying he did “not see a political path forward,” but added, “this grassroots movement on behalf of ‘We the People’ will continue.” Carson, as another anti-establishment choice, at one time nationally polled better than Trump, although that was before any voting took place.
Trump is currently leading in Florida with 40.3 percent and leaving Sen. Marco Rubio, a long-time politician in the state, in second place with 24.7 percent. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Ohio Gov. John Kasich lag behind with 18.3 percent and 8.7 percent respectively, according to the Real Clear Politics average of 10 recent Florida polls. The winner of the Florida primary earns all 99 of the state's delegates, a large boost on the way to attaining the 1,237 needed to secure the GOP nomination. Trump currently has 458 delegates, Cruz has 359, Rubio has 151, and Kasich has 54.
Former presidential candidate New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has also endorsed Trump.