Florida gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantisRonald Dion DeSantisGOP tentatively decides on Jacksonville for site of convention DeSantis pushing to host Republican National Convention in Florida Florida bars and theaters to reopen starting Friday, DeSantis says MORE (R) blocked former GOP state Rep. Ralph Arza from co-chairing a fundraiser over allegations he had made racial slurs in the past, Politico reported on Friday.
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“Ralph Arza’s name was removed because of hurtful and disgusting racial slurs that he has used in the past. He is not affiliated with our campaign,” DeSantis’s campaign said in a written statement to Politico.
According to Politico, Arza has faced allegations of using racial slurs, including calling Miami-Dade County’s first black schools chief a “black piece of shit” in Spanish, which Arza had denied.
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After a fellow GOP lawmaker complained about the comment, Politico reported that Arza got drunk and left a series of threatening messages on his colleague’s cellphone, at one point using a racial slur.
Arza did not immediately reply to a request for comment from The Hill. The DeSantis campaign also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
DeSantis, who resigned as a congressman earlier this week to focus on his campaign, has found himself in hot water after saying Floridians could not afford to “monkey this up” by electing his Democratic opponent, Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, who’s African-American.
DeSantis has strongly denied the comment had anything to do with race.
DeSantis is facing a tough race, according to recent polls. A Rasmussen poll released earlier on Friday showed Gillum leading DeSantis by 6 points.