Local GOP insists it has 'duty' to campaign for Republican charged with child molestation

The Palm Beach County Republican Party isn't distancing itself from suspended Clerk of Courts Mike Caruso, even though the state GOP has said it won't support him after he was charged in August with molesting a young relative.

Caruso won't drop out and insists he still intends to win in November, and county GOP Chairman Carl Cascio told the Miami Herald that the party committee "has the power and duty" under state law and local party rules "to conduct campaigns for party nominees."

The state Republican Party "publicly stated it would not support Mr. Caruso's reelection if he remained in the race," according to a letter Cascio posted on the county party's website. The local party has made no such statement, and instead the letter notes that Caruso is "currently Palm Beach County's only Republican constitutional officer" and is fighting "to clear his name."

Cascio wrote that the state party directed him to pick a replacement candidate after the arrest, and that he stayed in close contact with Gov. Ron DeSantis' office. The county elections supervisor even delayed printing ballots to give Republicans time, but Caruso refused to withdraw.

"I maintain my innocence and remain a candidate for Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller," Caruso, 68, said in a statement through his spokesperson. "My name is on the November ballot, and I intend to win this election."

DeSantis appointed Caruso, a former Republican state legislator and longtime ally, exactly one year before his Aug. 18 arrest by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. The governor suspended him right away.

Caruso has pleaded not guilty to charges including lewd or lascivious molestation, kidnapping, child abuse and luring or enticing a child. The case centers on allegations by a male relative who was under 5 at the time. At an Aug. 28 hearing, prosecutors disclosed that a second person, a woman, alleges Caruso molested her when she was 4.

An Orange County judge released Caruso on $160,000 bail, saying the state's case had weaknesses and might not be proven, but prosecutors objected.

Caruso's campaign website is down, and he has refunded two contributors and a data vendor. Campaign records show he has kept paying his oldest son for "outreach" and held two campaign meetings in mid-September at restaurants in Lake Park, where he lives.

Palm Beach County leans Democratic, and Caruso faces Democrat Yvette Drucker, a Boca Raton city council member. If Caruso wins, DeSantis could suspend him again.