DeSantis files for South Carolina primary

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday became the first high-profile Republican presidential candidate to file paperwork for next year’s South Carolina primary.

“I’m excited to be the first Republican candidate to file candidacy paperwork in South Carolina as we continue our mission to reverse American decline by rejecting Bidenomics, stopping the invasion at the border, combatting communist China, and ensuring a better future for our children,” DeSantis said during an event at the state’s GOP headquarters in Columbia.

The Florida governor was joined by South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Drew McKissick, state Sen. Josh Kimbrell (R) and state Rep. Chris Murphy (R). DeSantis is on a campaign swing through the early primary state, where he is scheduled to roll out his military policy in West Columbia. On Monday, he held a town hall in Tega Cay, S.C., a suburb of Charlotte.

The Palmetto State’s GOP primary will be Feb. 24 and is among the four traditional early voting contests in the Republican race, along with Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. Two of DeSantis’s rivals in the GOP race hail from the state: former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.).

The campaign stops come as DeSantis has struggled to gain traction against former President Trump. The governor has continued to trail the former president in polls since he entered the race in May.

DeSantis’s campaign appears to be in reset mode after his team confirmed last week they had laid off employees. In a change of media strategy, the governor is set to sit down with CNN’s Jake Tapper on Tuesday. The interview will mark his first formal interview with a major news organization other than Fox News.

DeSantis, while speaking to reporters on Tuesday in South Carolina, dismissed reports that his campaign grew too quickly.

“At the end of the day, when you start there are certain investments that you make,” DeSantis said. “We really believe having an important apparatus on the ground is important in caucus states and early states.”