Ron DeSantis and His Lousy 2024 Campaign Shocks Observers – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has proven himself a competent governor who won a second term by a landslide last Fall. That had many suggesting he could win the Republican nomination.
However, his attempt to go nationwide is running into the buzzsaw of Donald Trump’s loyal throng of followers.
He has been unable to make a dent into the Teflon Don’s support base.
Trump’s effort to paint DeSantis as an ingrate and a member of the Bush wing of the Republican Party has paid off. DeSantis started his campaign with he notorious technical glitches on Twitter Spaces with Elon Musk and has never recovered.
Trump’s indictments and lawsuits have transformed him into a bit of a political martyr. That has increased his support. Ron DeSantis has been unable to compete.
Ron DeSantis Loses Ground Against Trump
In March, Trump led DeSantis by a 45.9% to 30.1% margin. Trump’s indictments were like rocket fuel for his campaign and it has not looked back. Today that margin stands at 52.5% to 20.8% according to the Real Clear Politics Average.
“DeSantis is struggling to gain support, which won’t happen if he keeps being a poor imitation of the other prominent Florida-based candidate running for president. DeSantis should be trying to convince voters that he’s been a job creator in Florida and he will do the same for the country,” Linda Chavez wrote in a RealClearPolitics commentary attacking DeSantis’ stance on illegal migration.
DeSantis Burning Through Cash
The latest campaign finance report shows that DeSantis raised $20 million in the second quarter of 2023 and spent $8 million since formally launching his campaign in May. Seventy percent of DeSantis’s donors have already given the federal limit.
It has had to cut staff likely because it hired too many people too soon. The DeSantis-aligned Never Back Down super PAC has raised $130 million since March.
DeSantis has had turnover with top advisors Dave Abrams and Tucker Obenshain, leaving the campaign for an outside group supporting the candidate. Top Ron DeSantis spokesman Steve Cortes admitted earlier this month on Twitter Spaces that the campaign was way behind Trump.
His top donors want a shakeup at the top of the campaign.
“It is the chatter among donors, and it extends beyond the first rung of the bundler class. Money people are losing confidence quickly,” a DeSantis money-bundler told NBC News. “It’s time for that kind of change. It’s time for a shake-up at the top.”
Governor to Shift Focus From Florida to National Campaigning
DeSantis put Generra Peck, who oversaw his landslide re-election campaign against Democrat Charlie Crist, has taken flak for how the campaign has been run. She has no prior experience managing a presidential campaign.
“Time for a change. You get one shot at a reboot, and now is the time,” an unnamed DeSantis donor told NBC News.
Peck, however, told NBC News that she’s confident that her candidate can turn things around.
“Ron DeSantis has never been the favorite or the darling of the establishment, and he has won because of it every time,” Peck said in a statement to NBC. “No one in this race has been under fire more and won than Gov. DeSantis. He’s ready to prove them wrong again. Buckle up.”
Ron DeSantis plans to shift from large events to smaller appearances where he can get more access to media outlets. He isn’t quitting just yet.
“They’ve been saying that I’ve been doing poorly for my whole time as governor, basically,” he told CNN’s Jake Tapper.
John Rossomando is a defense and counterterrorism analyst and served as Senior Analyst for Counterterrorism at The Investigative Project on Terrorism for eight years. His work has been featured in numerous publications such as The American Thinker, The National Interest, National Review Online, Daily Wire, Red Alert Politics, CNSNews.com, The Daily Caller, Human Events, Newsmax, The American Spectator, TownHall.com, and Crisis Magazine. He also served as senior managing editor of The Bulletin, a 100,000-circulation daily newspaper in Philadelphia, and received the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors first-place award for his reporting.
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