Mr. Resident: Trump not wanted at Florida resort

PALM BEACH, Fla. — When he was forced out of the White House in January, Donald Trump thought he had left elections behind, for another four years at least. But one month on, having relocated to Mar-a-Lago, his private club in the wealthy enclave of Palm Beach, Mr Trump faces another vote that could affect his future.

The former president's neighbours on the southern Florida barrier island, who are usually known for settling disputes discreetly, are orchestrating a public campaign to bar him from living in his Mar-a-Lago club. Many plan to let their once-coveted club memberships lapse. Some of them are now eyeing a local council election in March, when a new mayor and two new council members will be installed who may be more sympathetic to their cause.

Many neighbours say Trump's residency breaks an agreement he struck with Palm Beach in the Nineties. When he transformed the beachfront mansion from a private home into a members' club he assured the town he would not live on the estate.

But Trump appears to have found a loophole in the agreement — claiming that as president of the club, he is technically a member of staff and exempt from the residency restriction.

Councillors are currently reluctant to pick a fight with a man as litigious as Trump, but some locals hope an overhaul in the town's management could alter their stance.

One Palm Beach homeowner who has joined the fight against Trump is Glenn Zeitz, a prominent lawyer who has owned a property on the island since 2005.

Zeitz told The Daily Telegraph his concern was that if the town made an exception for Trump it would “open the floodgates” to other club owners.

“They're used to having their own way, and if you do it for one person then it establishes precedent,” he said.