The former two-term governor of Florida, Jeb Bush, has said he is running for the office of President of the United States.
Mr Bush, 62, announced his intention to seek the Republican Party's nomination to contest the 2016 Presidential election during a rally at the Miami Dade Community College tonight.
If successful he would be the third member of his family to hold the office. He is so far the 11th member of the Republican Party to declare he is running for President in 2016.
Announcing his decision, he said: "I will run with heart. I will run to win."
Former governor Bush spoke at length of his achievements during his two terms as governor of Florida, which ended in January 2007.
He drew attention in particular to his successes in the Florida economy and the education sector.
On several occasions during the rally, the crowd broke into almost frenzied chants of "Jeb, Jeb, Jeb" and then "USA, USA, USA".
During his speech in Miami Mr Bush presented himself as an anti-Washington figure with a can-do spirit.
"We will take Washington - the static capital of this dynamic country - out of the business of causing problems," he said. "I know we can fix this, because I've done it."
He added: "We don't need another president who merely holds the top spot among the pampered elites of Washington. We need a president willing to challenge and disrupt the whole culture in our nation's capital.”
One of the largest rounds of applause was saved for his comment on the potential visit of President Barack Obama to Cuba: "We don't need a glorified tourist to go to Havana in support of a failed Cuba."
Hope you all will join me for a special day http://t.co/t9HbLScr6E pic.twitter.com/WDq11hxJzZ
— Jeb Bush (@JebBush) June 4, 2015At one point, a group of pro-immigration reform demonstrators in one of the stands began chanting for greater rights for illegal immigrants.
Supporters on the floor of the college sports hall began loudly chanting "Jeb, Jeb, Jeb" to drown them out, before the demonstrators were led from the rally by security officials.
There are about 16 possible major Republican candidates in all, but about five are bunched at the top of polls with 10% support each, including Mr Bush, according to the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
Hillary Clinton is the early front runner in the Democratic field with no current close competition.
Mr Bush's entry has immediately placed him in the top tier, even though he has experienced difficulty wooing evangelical voters who are important in the early primary contests.
He has also struggled to answer questions over how his policies would differ from his brother's, notably on the Iraq war.
