Donald Trump announced his candidacy for the presidency in the 2024 elections, thus becoming the first politician to run. So far, no one from within the Republican Party has appeared and declared that he would be a challenger to Trump. Politicians whose names are being circulated for candidacy are silent. Former U.S. President Trump has a great influence on the base of the Republican Party, which is why it is not easy to compete with him. Although he is down in the polls, the Republican favorite is once again Trump. Meanwhile, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis comes in second place.
Opinion polls show that DeSantis' popularity is on a steady upward trend. DeSantis is the name Trump has most fears of in the GOP.
Ron DeSantis has not announced his candidacy, but has not stated that he will not take the step. Rumor has it that De Santis is working on making the nomination move. On the other hand, Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, and Ken Griffin, the second largest donor and supporter of the Republican Party, announced that they would support De Santis if he ran for the elections.
Many billionaire Republican supporters, such as Robert Mercer and Stephen Schwarzman, seem to have given up on Trump. DeSantis is the hope of anti-Trump Republicans.
No centrist figure in the Republican Party appears ready to challenge Trump. And already in 2016, the party's base supported Trump to eliminate centrist Republicans.
What makes DeSantis stand out is that he is very close to Trump on a rhetorical level. DeSantis is actually a "Trumpist". For many Republicans, DeSantis is "a real Trumpian." This trait makes DeSantis the kind of rival Trump dislikes. In this matter, Sam Nunberg, a former adviser to Trump, said: "DeSantis is Trump's worst nightmare, younger, smarter, more successful."
"Trump's support" played an important role in de Santis winning the position of governor of Florida in 2018. From the moment de Santis emerged as a political figure, Trump was always reminded of his support for him. Trump even used terms belittling and insulting DeSantis. Three days before the November 8 US midterm elections, Trump criticized DeSantis at a rally, calling him "Ron Disancimonios". This term means "hypocrite" or "a person who claims to be religious and polite when he is not." Trump's rhetoric to DeSantis, who is running for governor, was not well received in party circles.
DeSantis won Florida's governorship in the 2018 election by a half-percentage-point margin. In the latest midterms, he won by 20 percentage points over his opponent.
DeSantis, because he scored the largest Republican victory in the election, inevitably antagonized Trump.
Many Republicans, who have lost three elections since 2018, see De Santis, 44, as the future of the Republican Party. Many Republican strategists argue that Trump should step aside and pave the way for DeSantis. The New York Post, owned by Rupert Murdoch, the Wall Street Journal, Fox TV and other media outlets that have previously supported Trump have given the green light to support De Santis.
Trump, who stood his ground after the election, said he knew things about DeSantis that no one else did and that the information would not be good for him. With these statements, Trump is implicitly asserting that if DeSantis runs, he will use every trump card to destroy him. Hard-line Trumpists are imploring De Santis to announce that he will not run. Accordingly, De Santis should support Trump, stay in office as governor, and wait his turn for the 2028 election.
Famed dissident Michael Savage, who has been called the "Godfather of Trumpism" and author of "Trump's War: His Battle for America," said, "DeSantis is the future of the Republican Party."
After the November 8 U.S. midterm elections, Trump's popularity is declining, while DeSantis' popularity is steadily increasing. De Santis, who did not respond to Trump's attacks, takes a very calm stance. Many of De Santis' supporters believe he must respond and speak out. De Santis has not yet announced his candidacy. However, tensions between Trump and De Santis are very high. And if he announces his candidacy, there will be a fierce war between Ron DeSantis and Don Trump.
