On Thursday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis participated in a ratings bonanza. He debated against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and the two governors reportedly drew 4.75 million live viewers, along with 700,000 more viewers on a rerun.
After grabbing attention in this debate, DeSantis is set to appear in the GOP’s primary debate on Wednesday… and he may use the opportunity to slam a rival candidate, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.
Wednesday’s debate may feature as few as three candidates. Former President Donald Trump plans to skip the event.
DeSantis is focusing on beating Haley in Iowa. He’s characterized the early-voting state as an opportunity to build momentum and win the nomination.
“We’re going to win Iowa,” DeSantis said Sunday on NBC News. “It’s going to help propel us to the nomination. But I think we’ll have a lot of work that we’ll have to do beyond that. I don’t think you take anything for granted.”
DeSantis concentrated his staff in the early-voting state. On Saturday, he finished touring each of Iowa’s 99 counties.
However, Never Back Down PAC — a DeSantis-affiliated nonprofit — announced the departure of its top officials on the same day. In Iowa polls, DeSantis is still tied at 16 percent with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.
In other words, the DeSantis campaign has amassed a mixed record in the Hawkeye State. Wednesday’s debate may present an opportunity for him. DeSantis commanded attention during his small debate with Newsom, and the upcoming debate may feature as few as three or four candidates.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie expects to qualify for the debate, according to his remarks to CBS News Sunday. Entrepreneur-turned-author Vivek Ramaswamy has handily qualified for all past debates.
Former President Donald Trump has declined to participate in the upcoming debate, and he skipped the previous three debates, too.
Trump is consistently leading polls of the GOP primary. In some polls, he’s leading by 45 points.
However, Trump is pulling only a 27-point lead in Iowa, even after campaigning in the state.
Amid this underperformance, Trump appeared in Iowa on Saturday to slam DeSantis.
“He seems to be dropping like a very, very sick bird into the ground,” he said at a campaign stop, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Both DeSantis and Haley have benefitted from Trump’s underperformance in Iowa. However, they may still be too far behind to win the early-voting state… or the nomination.
One DeSantis staffer even told New York magazine, “Congrats, Nikki… You won the Never Trump primary. Your prize is nothing.”
The Horn editorial team