Florida governor Ron DeSantis is widely seen as the top Republican contender to take on Donald Trump for the party’s 2024 nomination, but another high-profile GOP state leader is advising Mr DeSantis to hold off for now.
Former Alaska governor and vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin says Mr DeSantis should wait “a bit longer” and stay out of the 2024 race.
“DeSantis doesn’t need to [run],” she told Newsmax on Wednesday. “I envision him as our president someday but not right now.”
Ms Palin added that she’s “all about healthy, competitive primaries.”
“That makes everybody debate more articulately and work harder and let the people know what records are and visions for this country are,” she continued. “… But when you talk about the specific people, the individual people who are looking at putting their hat in the ring … they got a lot of guts thinking they’re gonna go up against Trump.”
So far, Mr DeSantis hasn’t formally declared his intention to seek the White House.
Another former Trump ally has: Nikki Haley.
The former Trump administration United Nations ambassador and former governor of South Carolina announced her campaign on Tuesday, saying she hopes to lead the country past “division and distractions.”
“I stand before you as the daughter of immigrants, as a proud wife of a combat veteran and as the mom of two amazing children,” she said in an announcement video. “I’ve served as governor of the great state of South Carolina and as America’s ambassador to the United Nations. And above all else, I’m a grateful American citizen who knows our best days are yet to come, if we unite and fight to save our country. I have devoted my life to this fight. And I’m just getting started. For a strong America, for a proud America, I am running for President of the United States of America.”
Mr DeSantis, though undeclared, is “almost certain” to throw his hat in the ring later this year, unnamed Republican sources close to the governor told The Hill.’
“I think his mind is pretty much made up at this point,” a GOP operative said. “My read on it is: Let’s get through session, get some stuff done and see where things stand. But unless something changes drastically between now and then, I’d say he’s a go.”
Mr DeSantis has identified potential campaign hires in crucial primary states like New Hampshire and Iowa, the Washington Post reports.
Even though he hasn’t announced yet, Mr Trump has already launched a vicious series of campaign-style attacks on Mr DeSantis, including an allegation that the Florida governor had inappropriate social contacts with young women and girls at parties where alcohol was served while he was a high school teacher.
“I spend my time delivering results for the people of Florida and fighting against Joe Biden. That’s how I spend my time,” Mr DeSantis said earlier this month in response. “I don’t spend my time trying to smear other Republicans.”
According to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll, Donald Trump leads the hypothetical GOP 2024 field with 43 per cent support, trailed by Mr DeSantis with 31 per cent, and Ms Haley with just 4 per cent.
