The Magic Insider

Magic Donate to Ron DeSantis Presidential Campaign; Why 'Odd'?

Florida governor Ron DeSantis appears to have a supporter in the Orlando Magic for his 2024 presidential run.

Jeremy Brener

In this story:

ORLANDO - Florida governor Ron DeSantis has eyes on the White House and the Orlando Magic is playing a small role in making that possible.

According to SFGate politics editor Alex Shultz, the Magic is listed as a donor of $50,000 towards Never Back Down Inc., which is DeSantis' campaign.

Shultz is also reporting that this donation could possibly be one of the largest of its kind from an NBA franchise to a presidential campaign.

"Team owners dumping money on presidential candidates (especially conservatives) is not new; in this case, it's very odd that, when given the opportunity, the organization isn't distancing itself from the DeSantis donation," Shultz said.

In fact, however - regardless of one's political views - the connection to DeSantis comes as no surprise, for two reasons: One, he has governed the state of Florida since 2019. And two, the Magic donation decision was likely driven by team governor Dan DeVos, whose family has been directly involved with the Republican party. His sister-in-law, Betsy DeVos, served as the U.S. Secretary of Education in President Trump's administration.

Shultz asked further details about the donation but received a "no comment" from Never Back Down Inc.

DeSantis is one of a handful of candidates vying to become the Republican Party's nominee for the 2024 re-election against incumbent Democratic president Joe Biden.

You can follow Jeremy Brener on Twitter @JeremyBrener.

Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Magic? Click Here.

Follow The Magic Insider on Facebook.

Follow The Magic Insider on Twitter.

Want even more Orlando Magic news? Check out the SI.com team page here.

Published
Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

Home/News