Ana Navarro has revealed that she remains a registered Republican largely because Florida’s closed primary system allows her to challenge MAGA-aligned candidates at the ballot box.
The 54-year-old political commentator disclosed her reasoning during Tuesday’s episode of The View, after actor Michael Douglas pressed her on why she still identifies with the Republican Party.
Navarro had addressed the issue days earlier in an interview with Entertainment Weekly , responding to critics who questioned her conservative credentials after she voted for Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.
“I’m not going to be lectured to about what a Republican is or isn’t,” Navarro told the publication. She argued that people who embrace Donald Trump’s politics are not necessarily representatives of traditional conservatism.
“I’m definitely not a Trump Republican,” she added, explaining that she continues to support many long-standing Republican principles that she believes are no longer reflected by the modern GOP.
Her explanation took a more pointed turn on The View when Douglas, 82, interrupted the panel discussion to praise Navarro’s political record before asking her directly about her party registration.
“No, I have to tell you. But why aren’t you independent? How can you still be a Republican?” the actor asked, prompting Navarro to react warmly to his compliment.
As Navarro attempted to respond, laughter from her cohosts and the studio audience briefly drowned her out.
Ana Navarro, 54, explained why she remains registered as a Republican after actor Michael Douglas put her on the spot during Tuesday’s episode of The View
“He got you there,” liberal cohost Sunny Hostin said with a smile as she applauded.
Once the laughter subsided, Navarro offered her explanation.
“Because I live in Florida, where the primaries are closed, and I want to be able to vote in the primaries and vote against those sons of b***hes,” she said.
Douglas, a prominent Democrat and outspoken critic of Trump, appeared satisfied with the answer.
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The panel then moved on to another topic.
Navarro joined The View as a cohost in 2022. Before becoming a television personality, she worked as a Republican strategist for notable figures including the late Senator John McCain and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.
Her break with the party began during Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, particularly after his comments describing Mexican immigrants as criminals and rapists, as well as the release of the Access Hollywood recording in which he made vulgar remarks about women.
“I’m registered in a Republican party that only exists in my mind, in my memory, and in the history books,” Navarro told Entertainment Weekly in the interview published Friday.
The 82-year-old Democrat praised the former political strategist’s career before challenging her over her party affiliation. Navarro has cohosted The View since 2022, following her work with Republican figures including John McCain and Jeb Bush
Navarro, a vocal Donald Trump critic, told Entertainment Weekly that those who share the former president’s views are not necessarily traditional Republicans
The Nicaragua-born commentator also recalled her career as a political strategist, remembering it as her being a ‘Republican hack.’
‘[I’d] get talking points from the RNC, campaigns, and my friends who were running campaigns or running for office,’ she said, adding it was her ‘job to go out there and regurgitate the same party lines that everybody else regurgitated on TV.’
‘Ten years ago it never would’ve occurred to me that I’d vote for Democrats,’ she also said.
‘I don’t like the idea of being ushered out [of the Republican Party]’ Navarro added. ‘I don’t like the idea of being forced out.’
She said if she moved to a state with open primaries, meaning voters can cast ballots freely, she’d ‘probably be registered as an independent because I don’t want to vote blindly for any party.
‘I want to vote for candidates and issues, I want to vote for strategic political reasons.’
Navarro said she doesn’t ‘feel that I’m a Democrat.’
‘I think that if you’re going to fight for something, you’re better off fighting from the inside than not.’
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