Yet for all the warning signs, Republicans aren’t counting the Florida governor out of the race just yet. DeSantis is expected to announce his 2024 intentions sometime in the coming weeks, and he’s still in a better position than most of his competition.
Despite trailing Trump by double-digits in early polling, DeSantis is the only candidate that’s making a dent in the GOP presidential primary. He has more money than virtually all of his rivals – more than $110 million between his state campaign committee and allied groups – and he’s coming off of a state legislative session that saw lawmakers grant him most of his policy wishes.
“It’s nowhere near over,” one Republican donor who’s supporting DeSantis’s White House ambitions said.
Of course, he still faces some challenges. DeSantis has received criticism over everything from his position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to his ultra-conservative policy agenda, including a six-week abortion ban he signed into law last month. And Trump and his allies aren’t giving DeSantis any breaks; they’ve attacked him almost constantly in recent weeks, hoping to halt his momentum before he formally enters the 2024 race.
Yet few candidates, declared or potential, can compete with the influence and operation that DeSantis has at his fingertips. In addition to his formal political team, he now has a well-funded super PAC, Never Back Down, behind him. And unlike most of his opponents, he has a recent record of policy achievements he can point to as he moves toward a White House bid.
There’s also early polling that suggests that DeSantis is the more electable candidate for Republicans in 2024. One survey released this week found the Florida governor outperforming Trump in a hypothetical head-to-head matchup against President Biden in Georgia – a state that Trump lost in 2020.
Nothing is set in stone yet. DeSantis is almost certain to launch a presidential campaign soon, but even his closest allies say that the situation remains fluid. Still, with the Florida state legislature wrapping up its annual session in the coming days, all eyes will be on the Florida governor.
