“He’s not going to win!” »
The comment made Friday evening in a small Irish pub in Dover, eastern New Hampshire, by Ted Greene, a local man who came to attend a Ron DeSantis political rally, could have been prescient. “After New Hampshire, he’s going back to Florida!” That’s what’s going to happen,” he added, smirking, while explaining that he was there out of curiosity, and especially for the closeness that this meeting allowed him to have with a candidate, “whom I especially see on television,” he said.
But it happened faster than expected.
Sunday afternoon, the governor of Florida, presented upon entering the race for the Republican nomination as Donald Trump’s most serious rival, decided to throw in the towel, even before Tuesday’s vote in New Hampshire .
“I am suspending my campaign today,” he announced in a video published on X. “It is clear to me that the majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance. » The 45-year-old politician was credited with 6% in voting intentions for next Tuesday’s vote, after winning a second place in Iowa, but far behind the ex-president, at 21%. against 51%.
Friday evening, however, he did not let anything appear in front of the dozens of activists gathered in Dover, calling on them to mobilize for him Tuesday evening in New Hampshire. “The choice is clear,” he said. Donald Trump is running for his problems, Nikki Haley is running for her donors’ problems. I am showing up for your issues and those of your families. »
“Ron DeSantis seemed to have found a solid base in Iowa, but that was not enough,” said Matthew Bartlett, Republican political organizer in New Hampshire. Here, the Granite State was a significant obstacle for him. He didn’t spend enough time there. It was too little, too late. » And the exit route was therefore inevitable, according to him.
The withdrawal of Ron DeSantis from the race now confirms the face-to-face battle taking place in this corner of New England, where Donald Trump is closely followed by the former United States ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, who could still create a surprise on Tuesday. Not without one more difficulty, however, since Sunday.
“The presence of Ron DeSantis offered him a path of passage since the governor of Florida divided the vote leaning towards Trump,” summarizes political scientist Andrew Smith, specialist in voter behavior at the University of New Hampshire. Dropping Chris Christie (a few days before Iowa) helped Haley, as 65% of her supporters say she is their second choice. But conversely, 66% of DeSantis voters say Trump is their second choice,” which now muddies the waters.
“I can’t ask our volunteers to donate their time and money if we don’t have a clear path to victory,” DeSantis said in his video, while acknowledging having had “disagreements with Donald Trump , as with the coronavirus pandemic.” But he affirms that the populist, whom he imitates in several respects with his radical positions on immigration, security or abortion, remains the “best” candidate against the current president, Joe Biden.
After Ron DeSantis’ visit to Dover on Friday evening, Paul and Rebecca remained pensive in the back of the pub. “I liked the way he spoke, without a ticker tape,” said the young woman. He has a lot to say, and that’s good. Did he convince me? I don’t know. But I’m convinced he believes everything he says. »
“It’s true that he’s different from Donald Trump in style,” added her husband. But, basically, he says the same thing, his policies are similar to Trump’s. So why take the copy when you can have the original? »