- Ron DeSantis spent most of his resources in Iowa, only to finish 30 points behind Donald Trump
- Tuesday is the second contest in the Republican primary, when New Hampshire votes: DeSantis is effectively sitting it out, and focused on South Carolina
- He is hoping to snatch South Carolina from former Governor Nikki Haley, but he is also shifting his tone, saying Trump supporters will back him in 2028
Ron DeSantis is seeking an ‘off-ramp’ from his 2024 campaign, according to reports, following a disappointing performance in Iowa – buoyed by the promise from Trump supporters to back him in 2028.
The Florida governor spent most of his resources in Iowa, only to finish 30 points behind Trump. He has largely ignored New Hampshire, which votes on Tuesday – and could see Nikki Haley defeat Trump.
Instead, he has been trying to revive his candidacy with an eye toward the February 24 South Carolina GOP primary, which is Haley’s home state.
DeSantis’s efforts were dealt a further blow on Friday night by former presidential contender Tim Scott – a senator for South Carolina – endorsing Trump.
The New York Times suggested that DeSantis is seeking an ‘off ramp’ from his campaign.
DeSantis, 45, has adopted a more self-reflective and conciliatory tone in recent days, suggesting he has perhaps accepted that 2024 will not be his year.
‘Look, my goal is to win the nomination. Had we won Iowa, we would have been in a great spot,’ said DeSantis in an interview on Thursday with radio host Hugh Hewitt.
‘I don’t want to be VP, I don’t want to be in the cabinet, I don’t want a TV show.
‘I’m in it to win it, and at some point if that’s not working out for you, I recognize that. This isn’t a vanity thing for me.’
He admitted to Hewitt that perhaps his campaign strategy had been flawed, and conceded that Trump’s strategy was a successful one.
‘Clearly, when you win Iowa by the amount he did, that’s what you want to be doing if you’re going to win the nomination,’ he said.
DeSantis said that focusing on Fox News, and ignoring other networks, had perhaps been an error.
‘I should have just been blanketing, I should have gone on all the corporate shows, I should have gone on everything.
‘We had an opportunity, I think, to come out of the gate and do that and reach a much broader folk.’
DeSantis has also in recent days dwelt publicly on the sentiment among Trump supporters he met on the campaign trail, and their pledge to vote for him in the next cycle.
Speaking on Tuesday in South Carolina, DeSantis said that Trump voters in Iowa had told him they would support him in four years.
‘They were coming up to me saying, “We want you in 2028, we love you, man,” he said.
He told a similar story on NBC News.
‘I had people come up to me saying, “I love you, man. I’m going to do Trump this time and you next time,”‘ he said.
‘That’s not what I wanted to hear, but being there we did make an impression and it’s important.’
DeSantis’s campaign spokesman insisted that their candidate was remaining in the race.
Andrew Romeo, the DeSantis campaign’s communications director, said DeSantis was in the race ‘for the long haul,’ through South Carolina and beyond.
DailyMail.com has contacted the DeSantis campaign for comment.
