Trump campaign rolls out endorsements from Pennsylvania reps

Five congressional Pennsylvania Republicans are endorsing former President Trump in the 2024 GOP White House primary, Trump’s campaign announced Friday as it seeks to flex its support within the party even after he was indicted on federal charges.

GOP Reps. Mike Kelly, Dan Meuser, Scott Perry, Guy Reschenthaler and John Joyce are all backing Trump’s reelection bid and will serve as part of the campaign’s “federal leadership team” from Pennsylvania.

Former Rep. Fred Keller (R-Pa.) and Carla Sands, who served as Trump’s ambassador to Denmark and donated to his 2016 campaign, will also serve as part of the team, the campaign said.

The endorsements give Trump the support of more than half of Pennsylvania’s Republican congressional delegation, and they add to the dozens of other congressional endorsements he has already received.

Trump has by far received the most congressional endorsements of any GOP candidate running for president, which his campaign views as both a sign of strength within the party and as evidence of Trump’s efforts to build and maintain relationships with lawmakers dating back to his time in the White House.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who is running second behind Trump in most polls, has racked up a handful of congressional endorsements, while his political operation has also touted a flurry of endorsements from state lawmakers in places like South Carolina and New Hampshire, which are early in the primary calendar.

Earlier this month, Trump pleaded not guilty on 37 counts following a Department of Justice indictment alleging he violated the Espionage Act and obstructed justice in taking classified records from his presidency and refusing to return them.

Trump was indicted in connection with the investigation led by special counsel Jack Smith; the unsealed charging document revealed Trump would also be facing charges on concealing documents and making false statements.

A CNN poll conducted after Trump was indicted found 47 percent of Republicans and Republican-leaning registered voters said the former president was their first choice in the primary, down from 53 percent in a May poll. But Trump still leads by 21 percentage points over DeSantis, who is running second in the poll at 26 percent support.