Kimberly Guilfoyle, a conservative activist, former prosecutor, and the fiancée to Donald Trump Jr., had to ask an audience of Republican loyalists for applause on Saturday night, in a moment that recalled an infamous blunder from former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.
“I’m here to tell you don’t lose hope. On a personal note, I can tell you that I am as hopeful as ever,” Guilfoyle said. “Because Americans from all walks of life have had enough of the Democrats’ decline. And we are ready, we are willing, and we are able to spark a new era of American exceptionalism.”
“And you can clap for that,” Guilfoyle added after pausing briefly for applause that didn’t seem to commence.
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Guilfoyle’s speech took place at a Florida Republican Party “victory dinner” at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida, on Saturday, where GOP leaders celebrated their “million voter advantage over the Democrats.”
Florida, once thought of as a swing state that could decide the outcome of elections, has drifted to the right for years. Former President Donald Trump won the state by more than 3 percentage points in 2020, and is ahead of Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in most polls.
Roughly 700 Republicans were in attendance, according to the Palm Beach Post.
Despite their loyalty to the party, Guilfoyle seemed to have a hard time connecting with the audience of GOP loyalists. Even attacks against the Democratic nominee were met with apathy.
“I have known her for 25 years. And let me tell you something—do whatever it takes to keep her out of the White House,” Guilfoyle said, pausing for muted applause. Guilfoyle, a native Californian, was previously married to the Golden State’s current governor, Gavin Newsom, until 2006.
Harris was a fixture in California politics for over a decade before her election to the Senate in 2017, previously serving as the San Francisco district attorney and the state’s attorney general.
The lackluster response to Guilfoyle’s speech seemed to rhyme with another poor performance from a Florida Republican—former Gov. Jeb Bush’s notorious “please clap” moment before a bored audience in Iowa during his failed presidential campaign in 2016.
Some parts of Guilfoyle’s speech did strike a chord with the conservative audience. “We will achieve not just American energy independence, but complete and total American energy dominance,” Guilfoyle said adamantly, repeating a Trump campaign platform that went over a bit better with the crowd.
Guilfoyle’s speech began later in the lineup, potentially explaining the lackluster reception. She followed speeches from Sen. Rick Scott, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, and Florida Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart and Byron Donalds.
Guilfoyle still received cheers and some standing ovations from the crowd seated closest to the stage as she wrapped up, proclaiming “God bless the United States of America, she’s worth fighting for.”
But the crowd became noticeably more animated for the next speaker immediately after Guilfoyle—current Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“Are you glad to be in the free state of Florida?” the governor asked, and was answered with rapturous applause from his state party.
