LARGO, Fla. — When you open the door to Conservative Grounds in Largo, the stickers, signs, and photos let you know exactly where you are.
It’s a meeting ground for local Republicans and like any coffee shop, conversation naturally comes over a cup.
“What I like about the governor just said, he was not afraid to call a spade a spade in this state, including big shot Disney,” customer, Bobby Kingfish, said.
On Thursday, those conversations revolved around two men, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former President Donald Trump and the race for the 2024 GOP nomination.
In fact, those talks took place right near cardboard cutouts of them.
From the handful of people we spoke with in the coffee shop in DeSantis’ home county there’s similar reaction to the governor entering the 2024 race and matching-up against Trump.
“I was excited about it naturally,” Kingfish added.
“I think healthy competition is great,” Audra Christian, another customer, said.
Excitement, but no commitment from these voters just yet.
“I will honestly take both. Either one. I like them both,” Christian added.
People like Bobby and Lowell Lytle say they’ll support whoever gets the nomination after the RNC, though Lowell says he’s leaning toward Trump.
“At this point in time, I'm just gonna let it ride and see what happens,” he added.
If the primary race turns bitter, just chalk it up to politics nowadays.
“I think as long as the Republican base remains friendly with each other, I think that will be great," Christian added. "I think if we start fighting at the base, it will fracture us. And that's, that's very bad for us.”
For now, these Florida GOP voters love DeSantis and they love Trump and that’s not changing yet.
"I'm just thrilled to think we've got at least a couple of, in fact, I think there's several people that make sense to me,” Lytle added.