More trouble for Ron DeSantis? Candidate cutting staff: After weeks of bad stories about his struggles as a candidate, the Florida governor is reportedly letting go of some staffers.
Is DeSantis now facing what was thought unthinkable: an early defeat in the GOP primary?
Ron DeSantis: Facing What Was Thought Unthinkable? An Early Loss?
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ struggling presidential campaign announced over the weekend that they have let go of “fewer than ten” staffers, Politico reported Saturday.
The staffers were mostly involved with event planning, and some may be re-assigned to a pro-DeSantis outside group.
The report also stated that the campaign has struggled to meet its fundraising goals.
“Though the governor raised $20 million in the second quarter of this year, $3 million of that was earmarked for the general election,” Politico said. “In addition, only about 15 percent of his donations came from small-dollar donors, a level he will likely have to enhance in order to keep up with former President Donald Trump, who has built a robust small-dollar network over the years. DeSantis’ campaign spent more than $1 million on payroll, payroll taxes, insurance, and processing fees in the second quarter with roughly 90 staffers on the books.”
Per Politico, the DeSantis-affiliated Never Back Down has raised over $100 million.
“Americans are rallying behind Ron DeSantis and his plan to reverse Joe Biden’s failures and restore sanity to our nation, and his momentum will only continue as voters see more of him in person, especially in Iowa,” DeSantis spokesperson Andrew Romeo told Politico in the story.
“Defeating Joe Biden and the $72 million behind him will require a nimble and candidate-driven campaign, and we are building a movement to go the distance.”
The DeSantis campaign also touted DeSantis’ recent visit to Iowa.
The candidate is scheduled this week to sit for an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, his first major interview with non-conservative media since officially entering the race.
The most recent Morning Consult poll, last week, placed DeSantis at 17 percent support in the Republican primary contest, placing him in second place, but nearly 40 points behind Donald Trump.
CBS News reported last week that donors have been questioned DeSantis at recent fundraisers on how he can make up the gap with Trump.
“He didn’t try to spin from it,” a donor was quoted as saying in the CBS story. “He said, ‘Yeah, we’re (polling) in the 20[s]. It’s a good spot to be right now, this early. It’s about the states that matter.”
In another story last week, NBC obtained a memo from the campaign, which touts the campaign’s fundraising numbers since its official launch, and that “the ballot is very fluid.”
Also over the weekend, CNN published an analysis of the latest quarterly fundraising numbers for the presidential candidates.
“The Florida governor raised $20 million – a strong total – but his campaign is burning through cash at a rapid rate, spending nearly $8 million since he entered the contest in late May,” CNN said of DeSantis’ campaign. “Travel and payroll expenses each topped $1 million, and more than $800,000 went to digital fundraising consulting, according to the campaign’s report. As of the end of June, DeSantis employed 90 people, compared to nearly 40 people employed by the campaign of former President Donald Trump, the current GOP primary front-runner.”
The analysis also stated that former Vice President Mike Pence has raised an anemic sum of $1.2 million, raising less than both New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.
As for President Biden, he has been “frugal” in the campaign so far, CNN said.
“Despite talking up the big numbers he’s raised with the DNC, Biden’s campaign is a bare-bones operation, his new filing shows – a slow start that’s sure to only deepen worries among some Democrats about the president’s reelection preparations,” the report said. “The Biden campaign, which officially launched in April, spent just $1.1 million in the second quarter and employed exactly four staffers as of the end of June, FEC records show. By contrast, in the same window in 2011, President Barack Obama’s campaign had spent more than $11 million on his reelection effort.”
Expertise and Experience
Stephen Silver is a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive. He is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenSilver.
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