Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis – who has long been a rumored potential rival for former President Donald Trump in the Republican presidential primary – is expected to launch his campaign next week, according to multiple reports.
The Wall Street Journal, CNN and Fox News all cited anonymous sources that said the 44-year-old two-term governor plans to file candidacy paperwork with the Federal Election Commission next week.
NBC News reported Monday that DeSantis’ team moved out of Republican Party of Florida headquarters. It said this move triggers disclosure requirements that would also require DeSantis to file his candidacy within the next two weeks.
However, sources who spoke to CNN warned against trying to predict DeSantis’ next move.
“DeSantis is known to surprise even his closest allies and advisers with last-minute changes,” according to the outlet. “DeSantis, who often boasts that he runs an operation free of leaks, may be further motivated to throw out the script to vex the media outlets who have preempted his announcement, the source said.”
If he files next week as predicted, it will coincide with DeSantis’ meeting in Miami, Fla., “with top financial backers,” according to Fox News Digital. DeSantis is not legally allowed to receive or ask for contributions for a presidential campaign unless he has formally declared his candidacy, the outlet noted. It also said a formal campaign kickoff is expected sometime after the donor meeting.
As a gubernatorial candidate, DeSantis has broken fundraising records. Fox said that, as of early spring, he had $110 million cash on hand in his fundraising committees – money that could be moved to “Never Back Down,” a super PAC backing the expected DeSantis presidential campaign.
Already, DeSantis has moved to sever ties with the Friends of Ron DeSantis political state committee.
Fox described that as a “further signal” of an impending candidacy announcement, as DeSantis would need to do it to comply with federal campaign finance regulations. Other signals could be his visits to “early voting presidential primary and caucus states since March,” (including a trip to New Hampshire planned this week) and an expansion of his political team in Tallahassee.
DeSantis himself has said this month that he plans to make an announcement “relatively soon” regarding a potential 2024 presidential run, according to USA Today. During an event Saturday in Iowa – also a primary state – DeSantis said there was “no news yet,” about running in the GOP primary.
As rumors about his potential campaign swirl, DeSantis has been busy with his gubernatorial duties this week. He announced that he was ready to deploy more than 1,100 “assets” including soldiers and law enforcement officers to aid border security in Texas, signed 21 new bills into law and new LGBTQ-related legislation.
Over the past several months, DeSantis has frequently been in the headlines for LGBTQ issues such as the “Don’t Say Gay” legislation and a fight with Disney. He also brought attention to Florida for a six-week abortion ban, which garnered critical comments from Trump, 76, his former supporter and GOP primary front-runner.
“He’s got no personality. And I don’t think he’s got a lot of political skill,” Trump said of DeSantis in a recent interview. Despite his legal issues and his loss to President Joe Biden in 2020, Trump remains the most popular potential 2024 candidate with Republicans across poll data gathered by RealClearPolitics. DeSantis usually falls in second place.
In one poll featured by RealClear, conducted by CNN in March, DeSantis was in the lead of potential GOP candidates. Per Morning Consult poll results released this week, other potential candidates include: former Vice President Mike Pence, former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, former U.S. House member Liz Cheney, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), former U.S. House member Asa Hutchinson and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.
Related
Related
