Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Sunday suspended his 2024 presidential bid and endorsed former President Donald Trump, long seen as the Republican Party's most likely alternative to the 45th president. The election campaign quietly came to an end.
“After finishing second in Iowa, we have been praying and contemplating our path forward. If there was anything I could have done to create a favorable outcome, I would have stopped the campaign more and done more interviews. please. — I would do that,” DeSantis announced in a video address.
“But we can't ask our supporters to volunteer their time and donate their resources unless we have a clear path to victory,” the 45-year-old added. “Therefore, I am canceling my campaign today.”
DeSantis said, “While there are differences of opinion,“ In terms of his relationship with former President Donald Trump, the 77-year-old is “better than incumbent Joe Biden. That's clear.”
The now former candidate added why he supports Trump. “Because we can't go back to the old Republican guard, a repackaged version of overcooked corporatism.” [GOP rival] Represented by Nikki Haley.
“The days of putting the American people at the bottom, pandering to big business, and bowing to woke ideology are over.”
South Carolina Sen. Josh Kimbrel, the first lawmaker in Haley's home state to endorse DeSantis, also immediately endorsed Trump following DeSantis' announcement.
Speculation that Mr. DeSantis might end his campaign comes after his single-digit polling numbers in New Hampshire and his super PAC Never Back Down ahead of Tuesday's first national primary. This has increased further due to the cancellation of events.
By Friday, Mr. DeSantis insisted he would continue campaigning until he could no longer see a “path forward,” telling conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that his campaign resources through the end of March were “at 100%.” “There is,” he said. Most states will hold Republican primaries and caucuses.
Trump and Haley acted as if DeSantis had dropped out of the race once in New Hampshire, and both candidates barely mentioned the Florida governor on the stump in the Granite State.
This is a developing story
