Hampton, New Hampton – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spent part of Wednesday in this seaside community along the New Hampshire coast, making a pitch to voters six days before the state's Republican presidential primary.
“I'm asking for your support on Tuesday,” DeSantis told the crowd as he prepares for the New Hampshire primary, the first on the Republican nomination calendar and second overall after this week's Iowa caucuses.
But while the Florida governor was speaking to supporters and voters, Fox News revealed that the DeSantis campaign is moving forward with plans to move the majority of its staff from Iowa to South Carolina instead of New Hampshire. Admitted.
DeSantis came in second in Iowa by a wide margin to former President Donald Trump, the likely front-runner for the Republican nomination who won 51% of the vote in Monday's caucuses, overwhelming his rivals. DeSantis, who has devoted most of her time and resources to Iowa, came in second place, narrowly beating Nikki Haley, a former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina governor.
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Republican presidential candidate and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks at an event in Hampton, New Hampshire, on January 17, 2024. (FOX News/Paul Steinhauser)
But polls show Haley trailing Trump by a wide margin in New Hampshire, with DeSantis in third place by a single digit, with moderates in the lead and independent voters in the state's prestigious presidential primary. Because of his important role, Florida's governor is focusing his efforts on many things. South Carolina is more conservative. The state will hold its first Southern contest on the Republican calendar on February 24th.
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The governor's team views the move to South Carolina as an opportunity to defeat Haley on her home court and eliminate her from the race.
“If Nikki Haley doesn't win her home state, it's over for her and it will be a two-person race,” Andrew Romeo, communications director for the DeSantis campaign, said in a statement. “We're wasting no time in taking the fight directly to Haley's home base.”
Republican presidential candidate and former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley listens to 10-year-old Hannah Kesseling during a campaign stop in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, on January 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
“It's all about South Carolina,” a political associate of Mr. DeSantis told Fox News.
“They haven't completely given up on New Hampshire. They're pursuing both states, but they're really looking at South Carolina,” the source added.
Mr. DeSantis will head to his home in Florida for the rest of the week and campaign in South Carolina on Saturday and Sunday, so the earliest he could return to New Hampshire is on the eve of the nation's first presidential primary. It will be Monday.
“He doesn't want to publicly drop New Hampshire because that would mean his campaign is over,” said David Carney, a longtime Republican consultant who is neutral on the 2024 nomination race, on Fox. told the news. “They have to go somewhere. They still have money to spend. So they will insist on going to South Carolina.”
Iowa is over.Republican presidential primary battle moves to New Hampshire
“It's a good strategy,” said Carney, a veteran of numerous presidential campaigns and a New Hampshire resident. “If I'm absent all week,” he said. , your campaign has ended. ”
Matthew Bartlett, a Republican strategist who splits his time between New Hampshire and the nation's capital, said DeSantis is “on track. I commend him and his team for getting it done, but they're I think it would have been much better to have done this during that time.” It's a long, hot summer, not the waning days before the New Hampshire primary when cakes are baked. ”
Republican presidential candidate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis poses for a photo with supporters in Hampton, New Hampshire, on January 17, 2024. (FOX News/Paul Steinhauser)
DeSantis' two events in New Hampshire on Wednesday were hosted by Never Back Down, an affiliated super PAC that has taken over many of the traditional responsibilities of a presidential campaign.
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But as Mr. DeSantis was on the campaign trail Tuesday, Fox News confirmed that Never Back Down had scaled back its operations and laid off some staff, including nearly the entire “war room” team. The news was first reported by the New York Times.
Mr. DeSantis made his case to New Hampshire voters in the Hamptons but did not mention the new emphasis on South Carolina. After the event, he did not respond to questions from reporters.
Neither the DeSantis campaign nor its super PACs have aired any TV spots in New Hampshire in the past two months, according to ad tracking firm AdImpact.
South Carolina's strategy may allow DeSantis to live to fight another day, but it plays into Haley's argument that the Republican nomination race is becoming a two-person race.
“If you look at where we are in New Hampshire and South Carolina and other places, it's safe to say that Iowa has turned this Republican primary into a two-person race tonight,” Haley said Monday night. He spoke at West Des Moines, where he finished in second place. Hawkeye State.
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