MIAMI — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis entered the 2024 presidential race on Wednesday, stepping into a crowded Republican primary contest that will test both his national appeal as an outspoken cultural conservative and the GOP’s willingness to move on from former President Donald Trump.

The 44-year-old Republican revealed his decision in a Federal Election Commission filing before an online conversation with Twitter CEO Elon Musk.

It marks a new chapter in his extraordinary rise from little-known congressman to two-term governor to a leading figure in the nation’s bitter fights over race, gender, abortion and other divisive issues. DeSantis is considered to be Trump’s strongest Republican rival even as the governor faces questions about his far-right policies, his campaign-trail personality and his lack of relationships across the Republican ecosystem. Still, he has generated significant interest among GOP primary voters by casting himself as a younger and more electable version of the embattled former president.

DeSantis’ audio-only announcement was to be streamed on Twitter Spaces beginning at 6 p.m. EDT.

He was expected to meet with donors at the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Miami before the evening announcement and appearances on conservative programs, including Fox News and Mark Levin’s radio show.

DeSantis’ entry into the Republican field has been rumored for months and he is considered one of the party’s strongest candidates in the quest to retake the White House from Democratic President Joe Biden. The 80-year-old incumbent, Republicans say, has pushed the nation too far left while failing to address inflation, immigration and crime.

The Republican nominee will face Biden on the general election ballot in November 2024.

He joins a field that also includes former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. Former Vice President Mike Pence is also considered a likely presidential candidate but has not yet announced a bid.

DeSantis begins his campaign in a top tier of two alongside Trump based on early public polling, fundraising and campaign infrastructure.

The two GOP powerhouses have much in common.

DeSantis, who likely would not have become the Florida governor without Trump’s endorsement, has adopted the former president’s fiery personality, his populist policies and even some of his rhetoric and mannerisms.

Yet DeSantis has one thing Trump does not: a credible claim that he may be more electable than Trump, who faces multiple legal threats and presided over Republican losses in three consecutive national elections.

On Tuesday, a New York judge tentatively scheduled Trump’s criminal trial to begin March 25, which falls in the heart of the presidential primary season. Trump pleaded not guilty last month to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records at his family company, the Trump Organization.

DeSantis, just six months ago, won his reelection in Florida by a stunning 19 percentage points — even as Republicans in many other states struggled. He also scored several major policy victories during the Republican-controlled Legislature’s spring session.

Aware of DeSantis’ draw, Trump has been almost singularly focused on undermining his political appeal for months. Trump and his team believe that DeSantis may be Trump’s only legitimate threat for the nomination.

Hours before the announcement, Trump argued in a social media post that “Ron DeSanctus” cannot win the general election or the GOP primary because of his previous votes in Congress on Social Security and Medicare.

“He was, and is, a disciple of horrible RINO Paul Ryan, and others too many to mention,” Trump wrote. “Also, he desperately needs a personality transplant and, to the best of my knowledge, they are not medically available yet. A disloyal person!”

Trump allies dispatched a truck outside DeSantis’ planned donor meeting at the Four Seasons running an attack ad describing him as “a swamp creature.” The Democratic National Committee sent another truck warning of DeSantis’ “extreme MAGA agenda.”

The kitchen-sink attacks and nicknames won’t be DeSantis’ only hurdle.

He is a political heavyweight in Florida and a regular on Fox News, but allies acknowledge that most primary voters in other states don’t know him well.

A Florida native with family roots in the Midwest, DeSantis studied at Yale University, where he played baseball. He would go on to Harvard Law School and become a Navy Judge Advocate General officer, a position that took him to Iraq and the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.

He ran for Congress in 2012 and won an Orlando-area district, becoming a founding member of the far-right Freedom Caucus on Capitol Hill.

Despite his lengthy resume, friends and foes alike note that DeSantis struggles to display the campaign-trail charisma and quick-on-your-feet thinking that often defines successful candidates at the national level. He has gone to great lengths to avoid unscripted public appearances and media scrutiny while governor, which is difficult, if not impossible, as a presidential contender.

Would-be supporters also worry that DeSantis has refused to invest in relationships with party leaders or fellow elected officials, raising questions about his ability to build the coalition he will ultimately need to beat Trump. By contrast, the more personable Trump has already scooped up an army of endorsements in key states, including Florida.

Beyond the primary, DeSantis’ greatest longer-term challenge may rest with the far-right policies he enacted as governor as an unapologetic leader in what he calls his war on “woke.”

The Florida governor sent dozens of immigrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard off the Massachusetts coast to draw attention to the influx of Latin American immigrants trying to cross the U.S.-Mexico border. He signed and then expanded the Parental Rights in Education bill — known by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law, which bans instruction or classroom discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in Florida public schools for all grades.

More recently, he signed a law banning abortions at six weeks, which is before most women realize they’re pregnant. And he single-handedly removed an elected prosecutor who vowed not to charge people under Florida’s new abortion restrictions or doctors who provide gender-affirming care.

DeSantis also signed a law this year allowing Florida residents to carry a concealed firearm without a permit. He pushed new measures that experts warn would weaken press freedoms. He also took control of a liberal arts college that he believed was indoctrinating students with leftist ideology.

The governor’s highest-profile political fight, however, has come against the beloved Florida-based entertainment giant Disney, which publicly opposed his “Don’t Say Gay” law. In retaliation, DeSantis seized control of Disney World’s governing body and installed loyalists who are threatening to take over park planning, among other extraordinary measures.

DeSantis himself has threatened to build a state prison on park property.

The dispute has drawn condemnation from business leaders and his Republican rivals, who said the moves are at odds with small-government conservatism.

DeSantis delayed his announcement until Florida’s legislative session was over. But for much of the year, he has been courting primary voters in key states and using an allied super political action committee to build out a large political organization that is essentially a campaign in waiting and already claims at least $30 million in the bank.

More than any of his opponents, except perhaps Trump, DeSantis is positioned to hit the ground running thanks to the super PAC’s monthslong efforts to install campaign infrastructure across Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina, which will host the first four contests on the GOP’s primary calendar early next year.

DeSantis gave no hint as to his plans during a meeting of the state clemency board Wednesday morning in Tallahassee, where he granted several pardons to former prisoners charged mostly with drug-related crimes decades ago.

“You are what the country needs,” one man said after getting his pardon.

A smiling DeSantis chuckled and thanked him.

___

Peoples reported from New York. Izaguirre reported in Tallahassee, Florida.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott launched his presidential campaign on Monday, offering an optimistic message he hopes can contrast the two figures who have used political combativeness to dominate the early GOP primary field: former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Scott, the Senate’s only Black Repubican, made the announcement in his hometown of North Charleston at Southern University, his alma mater and a private school affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.

“Our party and our nation are standing at a time for choosing. Victimhood or victory?,” he told cheering supporters, adding, “Grievance or greatness?”

“I choose freedom and hope and opportunity,” Scott said, he said that the GOP needs a candidate who can energize more than just its base.

Scott has frequently denounced Democrats for raising what he calls false social and political grievances. But offering such sentiments about the GOP could be an alternative to Trump, who has for years repeated lies about how he was denied a second term by widespread fraud that did not occur during the 2020 presidential election. DeSantis, meanwhile, has pushed Florida to the right by championing contentious new restrictions on abortion, LGBTQ rights and by seeking to limit the corporate power of Disney, one his state’s most powerful business interests.

Scott, 57, planned to huddle with home-state donors after the kickoff event, then begin a whirlwind, two-day campaign swing to Iowa and New Hampshire, which go first in GOP presidential primary voting.

The announcement gathering included an opening prayer by Republican Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the No. 2 Senate Republican, who said, “I think our country is ready to be inspired again.” Republican Sen. Mike Rounds, South Dakota’s other senator, has already announced his support for Scott.

A number of high-profile GOP senators have already backed Trump’s third bid for the White House, though, including Scott’s South Carolina colleague, Lindsey Graham. Trump nonetheless struck a conciliatory tone to start, welcoming Scott to the race in an online post Monday and noting that the pair worked together on his administration’s signature tax cut.

A source of strength for Scott will be his campaign bank account. He enters the 2024 race with more cash on hand than any other presidential candidate in U.S. history, with $22 million left in his campaign bank account at the end of his 2022 campaign that he can transfer to his presidential coffers.

It’s enough money, his team says, to keep Scott on the air with continuous TV ads in early voting states until the first round of votes next year.

Scott also won reelection in firmly Republican South Carolina — which voters third on the Republican presidential primary calendar — by more than 20 points less than six months ago. Advisors bet that can make Scott a serious contender for an early primary victory that could give him momentum heading deeper into the primary race.

But Scott is not the only South Carolina option. The state’s former governor, Nikki Haley, who also once served as Trump’s former United Nations ambassador, formally entered the primary race months ago.

Like others in the GOP race, including former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and “Woke, Inc.” author Vivek Ramaswamy, Scott’s early task will be finding a way to stand out in a field led by Trump and DeSantis, the latter of whom could announce his own bid as early as this week.

One way Scott hopes to do that is his trademark optimistic rhetoric. With his Christian faith an integral part of his political and personal story, Scott often quotes Scripture at his campaign events, weaving his reliance on spiritual guidance into his stump speech and even bestowing the name “Faith in America” on his pre-launch listening tour.

Scott said Monday that America’s promise means “you and I can go as high as our character, our grit, and our talent will take us.” “That’s why I’m the candidate the far left fears the most.”

The Democratic National Committee responded to Scott’s announcement by dismissing the notion that Scott offers much of an alternative to Trump’s policies. DNC chair Jamie Harrison, who ran unsuccessfully for Senate in South Carolina in 2020, released a statement Monday calling the senator “a fierce advocate of the MAGA agenda,” a reference to the former president’s “Make America Great Again” movement.

On many issues, Scott does indeed align with mainstream GOP positions. He wants to reduce government spending and restrict abortion, saying he would sign a federal law to prohibit abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy if elected president.

But Scott has pushed the party on some policing overhaul measures since the killing of George Floyd, and he has occasionally criticized Trump’s response to racial tensions. Throughout their disagreements, though, Scott has maintained a generally cordial relationship with Trump, saying in his book that the former president “listened intently” to his viewpoints on race-related issues.

When he was appointed to the Senate by then-governor Haley in 2012, Scott became the first Black senator from the South since just after the Civil War. Winning a 2014 special election to serve out the remainder of his term made him the first Black candidate to win a statewide race in South Carolina since the Reconstruction era.

He has long said his current term, which runs through 2029, would be his last.

Scott rejects the notion that the country is inherently racist and has repudiated the teaching of critical race theory, an academic framework that presents the idea that the nation’s institutions maintain the dominance of white people.

“I will be the President who destroys the liberal lie that our country is evil,” he said Monday. “We need to stop canceling our Founding Fathers and start celebrating them.”

If Scott is successful, he would be the first Black person to win the Republican presidential nomination and the second elected to the presidency, following Barack Obama in 2008.

Other Republicans are still deciding whether to wade into the presidential race, including former Vice President Mike Pence, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez.

President Joe Biden is seeking reelection and faces only token opposition in the Democratic primary. His party voted to move South Carolina to the leadoff spot for next year’s presidential primary calendar.

___

Weissert reported from Washington.

COLUMBUS — Ohio voters will get the chance to decide whether to make it harder to pass constitutional amendments just ahead of possible November vote on an amendment that would enshrine abortion rights in the state.

A resolution asking voters in an August election to raise the threshold for future amendments from a simple majority to 60% cleared the politically fractured Ohio House 62-37 on Wednesday. Five majority Republicans joined all Democrats in opposing it. The policy battle has consumed the state for months.

Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned its landmark Roe v. Wade ruling guaranteeing abortion rights last year, other states’ amendments involving the procedure have shown voter support for legal access to abortion is between 50% and 60%, whether in conservative Kansas, Democratic-leaning Michigan or Republican-leaning Kentucky. No vote has exceeded 60%.

AP VoteCast polling last year found 59% of Ohio voters say abortion should generally be legal.

The resolution’s Republican backers continued to characterize the effort as a constitutional protection act aimed at keeping deep-pocketed special interests out of Ohio’s foundational documents, while Democrats lambasted it as an assault on democracy.

Cries of protest resounded through the Statehouse as Wednesday’s debate took place, and Democratic lawmakers produced hand-painted signs from under their seats just after the vote and exited the chamber chanting, “One person, one vote.”

The measure’s sponsor, Republican state Rep. Brian Stewart, said the protesters didn’t bother him.

“You’ve got 150 people in T-shirts in a state of 12 million people,” he said. “That’s fine. They can come and put on the circus, but we expect this is going to be a robust election and well-received, and we believe it will pass when Ohioans get their chance to vote.”

The labor-backed We Are Ohio coalition launched an immediate opposition campaign. Other opponents include every living ex-governor of the state, both Republican and Democratic former attorneys general and the Ohio Libertarian Party.

Kayla Griffin of All Voting is Local, a voting rights organization that’s part of the We Are Ohio coalition, said lawmakers “should not underestimate us when we show up in August.”

Jen Miller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, said, “We call on every Ohioan to knock on doors, to phone bank, to register voters and to not just let them know there is an August election, but that our ability to determine our own futures as voters is on the line.”

Among maneuvers used to get the resolution past its GOP opposition was to remove language Tuesday that would send the question to an August ballot. Opponents of that strategy bristled at the fact that it was only in January that a new election law was signed eliminating most August special elections.

State Rep. Sharon Ray, who offered the amendment pushing the 60% question to Ohio’s next scheduled general or special election, said an August election would add “another level of complication” to the already tough job of local election workers.

“I made a promise to our board of elections,” the Republican said. “Remember, these are our neighbors and friends that work very hard to provide flawless elections for us — most of them volunteers, they get paid a mere stipend — and, I guess, I appreciate their sacrifice.”

The language was reinserted on the floor Wednesday, with minor changes that required it to go back through the Ohio Senate, which approved it easily.

___

Hendrickson is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Lake County

Leroy Township: 5-year, 3-mill additional levy for fire services Y: 221 N: 184

Kirtland Schools: 10-year, 3.74-mill renewal levy Y: 730 N: 350

Madison Village: continuous 3.8-mill replacement and 1.38-mill additional levy for police services Y: 160 N: 205

Waite Hill: Charter amendment to provide that the Village may, for five years commencing with the tax year 2023, continue to levy the existing tax of up to six and two-tenths (6.2) mills, provided that the use of such tax is limited to the provision of police, fire, EMS and public services for the Village of Waite Hill, exclusive of any capital costs associated with housing the police department but inclusive of capital equipment needed for the provision of police, fire, EMS and other public services Y: 153 N: 13

Willoughby: continuous, 2.5-mill additional levy for safety services Y: 2,516 N: 842

Willoughby-Eastlake Schools: 10-year, 6.91-mill renewal levy Y: 4,544 N: 2,470

Willowick: Ward 3 Precinct A, Local Option – Polito Zabkar Inc. (d.b.a. Willowick Cafe) – Sunday Sales. Y: 123 N: 46

Geauga County

Bainbridge Township: continuous, 4.75-mill additional levy for emergency medical services Y: 338 N: 1,755

Chardon Township: 5-year, 2.75-mill additional levy for streets, roads and bridges Y: 171 N: 223

Chester Township: Precinct F – Sunday Sales at Caves Road Sunoco Y: 10 N: 6

Thompson Township: 5-year, 2.5-mill additional levy for fire and EMS services Y: 101 N: 100

Voters approved the levy 2,516 to 842, according to unofficial final results from the Lake County Board of Elections.

“We are grateful for the overwhelming support of our safety forces displayed by our residents on the coldest May 2 in the past 100 years,” said Mayor Robert Fiala.

With the passing of the 2.5-mill continuous levy, the city will be able to provide its police and fire departments with the facilities, as well as the equipment needed to maintain the quality services residents and businesses deserve, Fiala said.

“We want to thank our community for supporting Issue 2 and the many volunteers who contributed their time, and effort in helping us explain the benefits of improved facilities and equipment for our safety forces,” said Willoughby City Council President Bob Carr. “We will inform our residents about the next steps in the coming months.”

The 2.5-mill levy will cost $87.50 per $100,000 of appraised home value annually and will generate $1,885,899 per year, according to the Lake County Auditor’s Office.

The additional levy cannot be used for wages or benefits and is intended to keep families, neighborhoods and the city safe, Fiala said. It is also intended to support converting the former Meister Media building into a modern law enforcement facility, as well as purchasing a new ladder truck and creating a sustainable revenue stream that will enable the city to meet the equipment and technology needs of first responders.

Over the years, the city has considered a safety levy and in 2021, a study was completed to specifically look at the Willoughby Police Department and do a master plan.

“That plan was meant to evaluate our facility as it exists today and compare it to what a state-of-the-art police facility would be,” Fiala said. “The current facility is about 25,000 square feet. It should be 45,000 to 47,000 square feet.”

Early last year, the city was approached by Meister Media, which has plans to relocate its offices. Through that conversation, Economic Development Director Tom Thielman came up with the idea that the building, located at 37733 Euclid Ave., would make a perfect police station.

“With additions, we think we can get it to about 35,000 or 37,000 square feet,” Fiala said. “It’s in great condition. We purchased the building December of last year. The purchase price was about $2.5 million.”

Fiala said the levy will not only make the city safer but benefit its home values.

“Safe cities attract new business,” he said. “We all want to be safe. In the summer, when everybody’s out, you’ll see a strong presence of our officers. Our community supports our police and fire. A poll I did several years ago — we have 99% approval rating of our police and fire. We’re proud of them.”

The levy was approved in a 221-184 vote, according to unofficial final results from the Lake County Board of Elections.

Board data indicated that there were 2,427 registered voters in Leroy Township as of May 2.

“We’re just happy that it passed,” said Fire Chief Michael Toman, adding, “Thank our community for their continued support.”

The levy will generate $413,083 every year and cost taxpayers $105 annually per $100,000 in property valuation, according to data from the Lake County Auditor’s Office.

The new levy replaces a five-year, 2-mill levy that was first passed in 2005 and last renewed in November 2020, Toman previously explained. Revenue provided through that levy has not increased since 2005, despite the construction of 91 new houses in that time.

“When a new house is built and occupied, it doesn’t raise the income that we bring in,” he said. “It actually lessens the tax on the other citizens.”

Toman noted the department is seeking to increase pay for firefighters and cover other rising costs.

“The pay is basically the biggest thing,” he said.

According to Toman, pay for the township’s firefighter-paramedics starts at $16 an hour. He compared that figure to other fire departments in Lake County that offer starting wages of at least $18 an hour.

“I have three full-time firefighters that were here pretty much all last summer,” he said. “It takes them away from their families. It’s not healthy because they don’t get the rest that they need, and that’s what we’re trying to stop.”

Toman added that some firefighters had 600 hours of overtime last year. The department works to maintain at least two firefighters on duty.

According to a Board of Elections summary document, the levy will begin this year and the first payments will be due in 2024.

The 5.18-mill continuous levy was defeated 205-160 in the May 2 Special Election, according to unofficial final results from the Lake County Elections Board.

This levy would have raised $450,000 per year and cost taxpayers $181.30 annually per $100,000 in property valuation, according to the Lake County Auditor’s Office. Madison Village’s current police levy yields $256,000 annually and costs taxpayers $102.67 a year per $100,000 in property valuation.

Revenue from the 5.18-mill levy would have been used for salaries; the cost of providing and maintaining vehicles, supplies and equipment; and other general operating expenses for the village Police Department.

Village Administrator Dwayne Bailey said it was disappointing that the levy didn’t pass.

“Our community values safety and security, and this levy was an important step in ensuring that our police force has the resources they need to provide a level of service expected by the community,” he said. “We will continue to work hard to find solutions to maintain a quality police force for Madison Village.”

Village government leaders asked voters to approve a levy which consisted of 3.8 replacement mills and a 1.38-mill increase. If the levy had passed, Madison Village would have been able to collect tax revenue based on current property values, rather than those on the books when its current police levy was passed in 2014.

When village voters cast ballots nine years ago, they approved a continuous 3.8-mill police levy which was intended to produce $240,000 per year.

In 2014, the year during which the existing levy passed, $539,000 was budgeted for the Madison Village Police Department. For 2023, the police department’s budget totals about $1.3 million.

The current levy generates $256,000 a year in revenue — slightly higher than the original $240,000 annual yield — but that’s only because of new homes and businesses that were added in Madison after 2014, according to the Lake County Auditor’s Office.

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Tuesday formally announced that he is running for reelection in 2024, asking voters to give him more time to “finish this job” he began when he was sworn into office and to set aside their concerns about extending the run of America’s oldest president for another four years.

Biden, who would be 86 at the end of a second term, is betting his first-term legislative achievements and more than 50 years of experience in Washington will count for more than concerns over his age. He faces a smooth path to winning his party’s nomination, with no serious Democratic rivals. But he’s still set for a hard-fought struggle to retain the presidency in a bitterly divided nation.

The announcement, in a three-minute video, comes on the four-year anniversary of when Biden declared for the White House in 2019, promising to heal the “soul of the nation” amid the turbulent presidency of Donald Trump — a goal that has remained elusive.

“I said we are in a battle for the soul of America, and we still are,” Biden said. “The question we are facing is whether in the years ahead we have more freedom or less freedom. More rights or fewer.”

While the prospect of seeking reelection has been a given for most modern presidents, that’s not always been the case for Biden. A notable swath of Democratic voters have indicated they would prefer he not run, in part because of his age — concerns Biden has called “totally legitimate” but ones he did not address head-on in the launch video.

Yet few things have unified Democratic voters like the prospect of Trump returning to power. And Biden’s political standing within his party stabilized after Democrats notched a stronger-than-expected performance in last year’s midterm elections. The president is set to run again on the same themes that buoyed his party last fall, particularly on preserving access to abortion.

“Freedom. Personal freedom is fundamental to who we are as Americans. There’s nothing more important. Nothing more sacred,” Biden said in the launch video, depicting Republican extremists as trying to roll back access to abortion, cut Social Security, limit voting rights and ban books they disagree with. “Around the country, MAGA extremists are lining up to take those bedrock freedoms away.”

“This is not a time to be complacent,” Biden added. “That’s why I’m running for reelection.”

As the contours of the campaign begin to take shape, Biden plans to campaign on his record. He spent his first two years as president combating the coronavirus pandemic and pushing through major bills such as the bipartisan infrastructure package and legislation to promote high-tech manufacturing and climate measures. With Republicans now in control of the House, Biden has shifted his focus to implementing those massive laws and making sure voters credit him for the improvements.

The president also has multiple policy goals and unmet promises from his first campaign that he’s asking voters on giving him another chance to fulfill.

“Let’s finish this job. I know we can,” Biden said in the video, repeating a mantra he said a dozen times during his State of the Union address in February, listing everything from passing a ban on assault-style weapons and lowering the cost of prescription drugs to codifying a national right to abortion after the Supreme Court’s ruling last year overturning Roe v. Wade.

Buoyed by the midterm results, Biden plans to continue to cast all Republicans as embracing what he calls “ultra-MAGA” politics — a reference to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan — regardless of whether his predecessor ends up on the 2024 ballot.

In the video, Biden speaks over brief clips and photographs of key moments in his presidency, snapshots of diverse Americans and flashes of outspoken Republican foes, including Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. He exhorts supporters that “this is our moment” to “defend democracy. Stand up for our personal freedoms. Stand up for the right to vote and our civil rights.”

Biden also plans to point to his work over the past two years shoring up American alliances, leading a global coalition to support Ukraine’s defenses against Russia’s invasion and returning the U.S. to the Paris climate accord. But public support in the U.S. for Ukraine has softened in recent months, and some voters question the tens of billions of dollars in military and economic assistance flowing to Kyiv.

The president faces lingering criticism over his administration’s chaotic 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan after nearly 20 years of war, which undercut the image of competence he aimed to portray, and he’s the target of GOP attacks over his immigration and economic policies.

As a candidate in 2020, Biden pitched voters on his familiarity with the halls of power in Washington and his relationships around the world. But even back then, he was acutely aware of voters’ concerns about his age.

“Look, I view myself as a bridge, not as anything else,” Biden said in March 2020, as he campaigned in Michigan with younger Democrats, including now-Vice President Kamala Harris, Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. “There’s an entire generation of leaders you saw stand behind me. They are the future of this country.”

Three years later, the president now 80, Biden allies say his time in office has demonstrated that he saw himself as more of a transformational than a transitional leader.

Still, many Democrats would prefer that Biden didn’t run again. A recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows just 47% of Democrats say they want him to seek a second term, up from 37% in February. And Biden’s verbal — and occasional physical — stumbles have become fodder for critics trying to cast him as unfit for office.

Biden, on multiple occasions, has brushed back concerns about his age, saying simply, “Watch me.”

During a routine physical in February, his physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, declared him “healthy, vigorous” and “fit” to handle his White House responsibilities.

Aides acknowledge that while some in his party might prefer an alternative to Biden, there is anything but consensus within their diverse coalition on who that might be. And they insist that when Biden is compared with whomever the GOP nominates, Democrats and independents will rally around Biden.

For now, the 76-year-old Trump is the favorite to emerge as the Republican nominee, creating the potential of a historic sequel to the bitterly fought 2020 campaign. But Trump faces significant hurdles of his own, including the designation of being the first former president to face criminal charges. The remaining GOP field is volatile, with DeSantis emerging as an early alternative to Trump. DeSantis’ stature is also in question, however, amid questions about his readiness to campaign outside of his increasingly Republican-leaning state.

To prevail again, Biden will need the alliance of young voters and Black voters — particularly women — along with blue-collar Midwesterners, moderates and disaffected Republicans who helped him win in 2020. He’ll have to again carry the so-called “blue wall” in the Upper Midwest, while protecting his position in Georgia and Arizona, longtime GOP strongholds he narrowly won last time.

Biden’s reelection bid comes as the nation weathers uncertain economic crosscurrents. Inflation is ticking down after hitting the highest rate in a generation, but unemployment is at a 50-year low, and the economy is showing signs of resilience despite Federal Reserve interest rate hikes.

“If voters let Biden ‘finish the job,’ inflation will continue to skyrocket, crime rates will rise, more fentanyl will cross our open borders, children will continue to be left behind, and American families will be worse off,” Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel said in a statement.

Presidents typically try to delay their reelection announcements to maintain the advantages of incumbency and skate above the political fray for as long as possible while their rivals trade jabs. But the leg up offered by being in the White House can be rickety — three of the last seven presidents have lost reelection, most recently Trump in 2020.

Biden’s announcement is roughly consistent with the timeline followed by then-President Barack Obama, who waited until April 2011 to declare for a second term and didn’t hold a reelection rally until May 2012. Trump launched his reelection bid on the day he was sworn in in 2017.

Biden is not expected to dramatically alter his day-to-day schedule as a candidate — at least not immediately — with aides believing his strongest political asset is showing the American people that he is governing. And if he follows the Obama playbook, he may not hold any formal campaign rallies until well into 2024.

On Tuesday, Biden named White House adviser Julie Chávez Rodríguez to serve as campaign manager and Quentin Fulks, who ran Sen. Raphael Warnock’s reelection campaign in Georgia last year, to serve as principal deputy campaign manager. The campaign co-chairs will be Reps. Lisa Blunt-Rochester, Jim Clyburn and Veronica Escobar; Sens. Chris Coons and Tammy Duckworth; entertainment mogul and Democratic mega-donor Jeffrey Katzenberg; and Whitmer.

On the heels of the announcement Tuesday, Biden was set to deliver remarks to union members before hosting South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol for a state visit at the White House. He plans to meet with party donors in Washington later this week.

The levy, which will have a continuous duration, consists of 3.8 replacement mills and a 1.38-mill increase. If approved, the levy would generate $450,000 per year and cost taxpayers $181.30 annually per $100,000 in property valuation, according to the Lake County Auditor’s Office.

Revenue from the proposed levy would be used to cover salaries, the cost of providing and maintaining vehicles, supplies and equipment, and other general operating expenses for the village Police Department.

If the combined replacement and additional levy on the May 2 ballot passes, Madison Village will be able collect tax revenue based on current property values, rather than those on the books when its current police levy was passed in 2014.

When village voters cast ballots nine years ago, they approved a continuous 3.8-mill police levy which was intended to produce $240,000 per year.

“It’s no secret that the cost of everything has risen astronomically in recent years, and we’re trying to stay ahead of the curve, while at the same time growing our police department to accommodate our local growth,” village Administrator Dwayne Bailey said.

Six or seven years ago, Madison Village government decided to change the composition of the police department to have a more professional full-time staff of officers who are familiar with the community, Bailey said.

“Prior to that, the department was staffed by a majority of part-timers who worked for multiple communities,” he said. “They just weren’t here day in and day out to know the residents, to do community policing and stuff like that.”

In 2023, the village appropriated funding for 10 full-time officers, including Chief Troy McIntosh; and five part-time officers.

The police department’s growth in recent years has occurred primarily in response to the ongoing commercial development around the Interstate 90 and Route 528 interchange, McIntosh said.

“When the original levy was passed in 2014, the village didn’t have the hotels or truck stops we have now, and that area is continuing to develop,” he said.

For 2023, the police department’s budget totals about $1.3 million. In 2014, the year during which the existing levy passed, $539,000 was budgeted for the police department.

McIntosh noted that the existing police levy funded just over 40 percent of the police department’s budget in 2016.

“This year, it’s projected to fund slightly less than 25 percent of our budget,” he said.

Madison Village’s existing 3.8-mill police levy costs taxpayers $102.67 a year per $100,000 in property valuation, according to the Lake County Auditor’s Office.

The cost to the taxpayer per $100,000 originally was higher, but has been scaled back over the years as property values in the village has risen. That’s because Ohio law mandates that voted levies cannot extract more revenue from property owners than they were directed to pay in the first year that taxes from a levy were collected.

The current levy generates $256,000 a year in revenue — slightly higher than the original $240,000 annual yield — but that’s only because of new homes and businesses that were added in Madison after 2014, according to the Lake County Auditor’s Office.

The 5.18-mill levy, in comparison to the current police levy, would cost village taxpayers an additional $78.63 annually per $100,000 in property valuation, if it secures passage on May 2.

Bailey said that approval of the 5.18-mill police levy will help to maintain the current level of service and protection that Madison Village residents have come to expect from their police department.

Additional revenue also is needed so the police department can keep up with rising operating costs, and protect the growing number of nonresidents who are coming into the village because of business development at the I-90 and Route 528 interchange, he added.

There were 2,276 registered voters in Madison Village as of April 21, Lake County Elections Board records showed.

It is a 2.5-mill continuous property tax levy that will cost $87.50 per $100,000 of appraised home value annually and will generate $1,885,899 per year, according to the Lake County Auditor’s Office.

The additional levy cannot be used for wages or benefits and is intended to keep families, neighborhoods and the city safe, said Mayor Robert Fiala. It is also intended to support converting the former Meister Media building into a modern law enforcement facility, purchasing a new ladder truck and creating a sustainable revenue stream that will enable the city to meet the equipment and technology needs of first responders.

In law enforcement and in terms of the city’s facilities, everything’s changed, Fiala said. In the past 10 years, dispatch calls have risen 25%.

“We face a number of challenges,” he said. “Forty percent of crimes committed in Lake County come from people outside of Lake County. The criminals are different. The crimes are different. We’re arresting 15-year-old car thieves now, so what we’re seeing in our city today, from both the crimes and the criminals, are far different than we’ve seen over the years.”

Over the years, the city has considered a safety levy and in 2021, a study was completed to specifically look at the Willoughby Police Department and do a master plan.

“That plan was meant to evaluate our facility as it exists today and compare it to what a state-of-the-art police facility would be,” Fiala said. “The current facility is about 25,000 square feet. It should be 45,000 to 47,000 square feet.”

The current police department, located at 36700 Euclid Ave., also has aging equipment. Mechanical equipment, boilers, hot water tanks, roofs, windows and the exterior are all in need of repair.

“These boilers are outdated and wouldn’t meet current code for energy efficiency,” Fiala said. “Our jail does not meet current state codes. They’ve changed.”

Storage challenges are also being faced at the current department as there is not enough space in the building to store records.

“As part of our jail, incarceration and crime investigation, we have to do chain of custody for evidence,” Fiala said. “Although we’re getting by and our chain of custody is secure, there are better ways to maintain some of the things we’re bringing in as part of our policing efforts.”

Early last year, the city was approached by Meister Media, which has since downsized from 120 employees to 30 and has plans to relocate their offices. Through that conversation, Economic Development Director Tom Thielman came up with the idea that the building, located at 37733 Euclid Ave., would make a perfect police station.

“With additions, we think we can get it to about 35,000 or 37,000 square feet,” Fiala said. “It’s in great condition. We purchased the building December of last year. The purchase price was about $2.5 million.”

Meanwhile, the city’s aging water truck is 26 years old and 47 feet long.

“It’s a hard vehicle to navigate through our city,” Fiala said. “The solution is a smaller vehicle. Replacing fire equipment is not inexpensive.”

The city faces ongoing capital needs as police cars are purchased every year and squads are purchased every three years.

“We’ve got a lot of equipment in those cars that have to be replaced because they age out,” Fiala said.

Fiala said the levy would not only make the city safer but benefit its home values.

“Safe cities attract new business,” he said. “We all want to be safe. In the summer, when everybody’s out, you’ll see a strong presence of our officers. Our community supports our police and fire. A poll I did several years ago — we have 99% approval rating of our police and fire. We’re proud of them.”

There are currently 16,882 registered voters in Willoughby, according to the Lake County Elections Board.