Trump says DeSantis should be reelected one day after labeling him ‘Ron DeSanctimonious’

Former President Trump at a Sunday rally told Floridians they should reelect Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) just one day after Trump had nicknamed his potential 2024 rival “Ron DeSanctimonious.”

Trump held the rally in support of Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) reelection bid, but DeSantis, who will appear alongside Rubio on the ballot this week, was not in attendance.

“The people of Florida are going to reelect the wonderful, the great friend of mine, Marco Rubio, to the United States Senate, and you’re going to reelect Ron DeSantis as your governor,” Trump said.

Axios reported the former president’s team is looking at announcing another White House bid on Nov. 14, and Trump himself has publicly stated an announcement is coming “very soon.”

During a Saturday rally in Latrobe, Pa., held in support of the state’s Republican nominees, Trump took a shot at the Florida governor while showing rallygoers a recent poll of the 2024 GOP field that showed the former president with 71 percent support, far ahead of DeSantis and other Republicans.

“We’re winning big, big, big in the Republican Party for the nomination like nobody’s ever seen before,” Trump said on Saturday. “Let’s see, there it is: Trump at 71. Ron DeSanctimonious at 10 percent. Mike Pence at 7 — oh, Mike’s doing better than I thought.”

That survey is in line with other recent polling that suggests Trump would easily win the Republican nomination if he runs in 2024, but DeSantis is generally seen as the former president’s most formidable possible opponent.

The Florida governor and Rubio are both viewed as favorites to win their elections this week by nonpartisan election analysts.

Rubio faces Rep. Val Demings (D), while DeSantis faces former Rep. Charlie Crist (D), who also served as the state’s governor from 2007 to 2011. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates both contests as “likely Republican.”