FILE - A man walks out of a flooded neighborhood Thursday, April 13, 2023, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Saturday, April 22, 2023, is asking the Biden administration to declare Broward County a disaster area due to flooding earlier this month after record rainfall. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier, File)FILE - Trucks and a resident on foot make their way through receding floodwaters in the Sailboat Bend neighborhood of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., April 13, 2023. Over 25 inches of rain fell in South Florida since Monday, causing widespread flooding. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Saturday, April 22, 2023, is asking the Biden administration to declare Broward County a disaster area due to flooding earlier this month after record rainfall. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)FILE - Small planes are parked at Fort Lauderdale- Hollywood International Airport, after the airport was force to shut down due to flooding, Thursday, April 13, 2023, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Saturday, April 22, 2023, is asking the Biden administration to declare Broward County a disaster area due to flooding earlier this month after record rainfall. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier, File)FILE - Receding floodwaters surround a home on Las Olas (Spanish for "The Waves") Boulevard in the Sailboat Bend neighborhood of in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Thursday, April 13, 2023. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Saturday, April 22, 2023, is asking the Biden administration to declare Broward County a disaster area due to flooding earlier this month after record rainfall. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)
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FILE - A man walks out of a flooded neighborhood Thursday, April 13, 2023, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Saturday, April 22, 2023, is asking the Biden administration to declare Broward County a disaster area due to flooding earlier this month after record rainfall. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier, File)
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Saturday that he will ask the Biden administration to declare Broward County a disaster area due to flooding earlier this month after record rainfall.
If granted, the declaration would make Broward residents who incurred damage to their homes and other property eligible for a wide range of loans and other assistance. Local governments would also be eligible.
The flooding also closed the airport for almost two days. Gas deliveries to the port were also slowed, causing long lines at the pump.
The Republican governor is expected to soon announce that he will seek his party's nomination to challenge President Joe Biden in next year's election.
While frequently sniping at each other, the Democratic president and the governor have seen their administrations work together after disasters. That includes last year's Hurricane Ian, which killed more than 140 people and left thousands homeless, and the 2021 collapse of a condo tower in Surfside, which killed 98. ___
This version corrects that DeSantis said he will ask the Biden administration for disaster relief, not that he has formally asked.
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