A pollster for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ 2024 campaign for the GOP nomination for president is privately admitting that the campaign is on its last legs.
Ryan Tyson, one of DeSantis’ closest advisers and longtime pollster has been privately telling multiple people that they are at the point in the campaign where they need to “make the patient comfortable,” according to the New York Times.
The phrase is usually associated with end-of-life care of terminally ill patients.
The Times also reported that several people in the campaign are now starting to think about “reputation management” after the campaign ends amid a “slow-motion implosion” as DeSantis’ supporters become “drained and demoralized.”
Both Tyson and the DeSantis campaign have denied the reporting. But it is pretty clear that the campaign is struggling.
Despite completing a tour of all 99 counties in Iowa and with key endorsements from an influential evangelical leader and the state’s governor, DeSantis still trails Donald Trump by double digits in the key early caucus state.
DeSantis has also fallen into fourth in the field behind Trump, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and former New Jersey Chris Christie in New Hampshire. He’s leading political newcomer, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy by just 1 point in the state.
There is also significant disagreement about strategy and funding between the campaign and ‘Never Back Down’ PAC the main outside group supporting DeSantis’ presidential bid. The disagreement has led to several top officials at the PAC stepping down and now it has canceled remaining TV ad reservations in Iowa and New Hampshire, according to NBC News.
DeSantis today is a far cry from a year ago when he was being hailed as ‘Trump without the baggage’ and “DeFuture“.
Stuart Stevens, a top strategist for Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign told The Times that instead of ‘Trump without the baggage’ what Republicans got with DeSantis was “Ted Cruz without the personality.”
