Stephen King Says DeSantis Used Vaccines For ‘Political Gain’

SARASOTA, FL — Horror writer Stephen King, a part-time Sarasota resident, slammed Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis on Twitter for using the state’s vaccine distribution for “political gain.”

DeSantis has been accused of favoring wealthy Floridians after a recent state-run pop-up vaccination event in Lakewood Ranch targeted two of the wealthiest ZIP codes in Manatee County.

“It seems possible — likely, even — that Ron DeSantis provided rich, Republican-leaning communities like Lakewood Ranch with priority vaccinations for political gain,” King tweeted Monday morning.

Around 3,000 doses were administered at the vaccine clinic, which was held at the Premier Sports Campus in Lakewood Ranch Wednesday through Friday.

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DeSantis was visibly irritated when questioned by reporters about the clinic at a Feb. 16 news conference in Lakewood Ranch, threatening to take away the county’s allotment of vaccine doses if residents were unhappy about the pop-up event.

"If Manatee County doesn't like us doing this," DeSantis said, "then we are totally fine putting this in counties that want it. We're totally happy to do that. Anyone that's saying that, let us know if you want us to send it Sarasota or Charlotte or Pasco or wherever, let us know — we're happy to do it."

Manatee County Commissioner Vanessa Baugh, who helped organized the clinic, is also under fire for the event. She hand-picked the District 5 ZIP codes targeted by the vaccination pop-up and also directed the county’s Public Safety Director Jacob Sauer to create a VIP list – which included herself; Lakewood Ranch president CEO and his father, Lawrence Jensen; and her former neighbors, Robert and Marie Keehn – to receive vaccine appointments during the event.

Nikki Fried, Florida’s commissioner of agriculture and commerce, is also among those calling out DeSantis for the exclusive vaccination event, calling it “wrong and potentially illegal” on Twitter.

“Vaccines are a public health resource – not a luxury based on political connections,” she tweeted Wednesday. “Elected officials shouldn’t be abusing their power to put themselves and their friends ahead of the public. This is why people don’t trust the system.”