(RepublicanNews.org) – Another GOP presidential candidate bites the dust as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis throws in the towel, ceding an almost certain victory to former President Donald Trump for the Republican nomination, whom DeSantis now fully supports.
After about eight months on the campaign trail, DeSantis posted a video on Twitter on Sunday, January 21st, officially announcing the suspension of his presidential campaign and giving Trump his endorsement. Back in May 2023, the 45-year-old was just announcing his candidacy on the social media platform, and now he’s withdrawing it right before the New Hampshire primary.
Despite the high expectations that the Florida governor would become a serious challenger to Trump, his campaign ultimately failed to measure up, even though he still managed to hold second place in the primary polls. DeSantis also managed to pull in a campaign war chest of over $100 million while boasting a record of significant victories in the Sunshine State on issues most conservatives are concerned about, such as removing “woke” ideology from the education system and heavier restrictions on abortion.
Although he had the funds and the old-guard GOP support, DeSantis’ campaign suffered staffing issues and other strategic errors and simply could not muster the support needed in Iowa. Following the Iowa caucuses, it became obvious Trump would be the nominee after he easily brought in 51% support, more than DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley combined as the second and third-place contenders.
Just 30 minutes into tallying up the results, the media was already declaring Trump the victor in Iowa. After the results, the fourth-place contender, Vivek Ramaswamy, immediately dropped out of the race and endorsed Trump. Ramaswamy campaigned heavily in Iowa but saw the writing on the wall after its voters made it clear they wanted the former president back in the White House.
Now that DeSantis is also out of the race, this leaves Trump with only one other challenger. Haley, who worked under Trump as United Nations ambassador, has been faring even worse than the Florida governor in the race, yet she refuses to follow suit and throw her lot in with her former boss.
Copyright 2024, RepublicanNews.org
