Mar-a-Lago, FL - Incoming President Donald Trump has publicly encouraged Jennifer Rubin, a well-known conservative commentator and Washington Post columnist, to run for the state's open Senate seat in the upcoming 2026 election. Rubin, who has built a reputation as a strong critic of Trump, particularly after he left office, has been a leading voice for a faction of the Republican Party that advocates for a return to more traditional conservative principles. She has often expressed frustration with what she views as the GOP’s drift toward extremism under Trump's influence.