Ron DeSantis drops out of 2024 Republican presidential race ahead of the New Hampshire primary

Author: Aaron Navarro, Claire Galt
Published: Updated:
FILE – Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his wife Casey, walk in the July 4th parade, July 4, 2023, in Merrimack, N.H. As the six month sprint to the Iowa caucuses begins, the sprawling field of Republican presidential candidates is facing growing pressure to prove they can become serious challengers to former President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Reba Saldanha, File)

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended his presidential campaign on Sunday, posting a video on X saying he could not ask his campaign staffers to give their time “without a clear path to victory.” 

“It’s clear to me that a majority of Republican primary want to give Donald Trump another chance,” DeSantis said.

He added that he had signed a pledge to support the eventual nominee.

“He was going to get spanked in New Hampshire and then probably finish third at best in South Carolina. If you drop out now, then you can kind of go otu on a little bit of a higher note, say hey, we finished second in Iowa,” said UCF Political Scientist Aubrey Jewett.

After placing a distant second in Iowa, losing to former President Donald Trump by 30 points, DeSantis has failed to articulate his path to the nomination and what states he would be able to win against Trump, dropping out of the race two days before the New Hampshire primary.

He had invested large amounts of time and money in trying to win Iowa, as he and his super PAC bet that an aggressive approach of retail politics and building a ground game operation would result in an upset or a closer race. DeSantis finished 30 points behind Trump last week in the Iowa caucuses.

“He made the decision that he had to and I’m really looking forward to working with him back here in Florida the next couple of years,” said Representative Mike Giallombardo from Cape Coral, “We have a lot of battles to win right here, here in Florida.”

WINK News contributed to this article.

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