Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump appear to be on a collision course to face-off in the 2024 Republican Presidential Primary.
They’ve been most every Republican voter’s top two choices for months and their lead on the rest of the pack is only widening.
But Donald Trump was flabbergasted when he learned that his “hero’s welcome” at his Mar-a-Lago 2024 campaign announcement wasn’t the only one that went down in Florida.
In fact, Ron DeSantis beat him to his own “hero’s welcome” in Florida just moments before Trump took the stage.
Last week, former President Donald Trump laid two years of speculation to rest when he officially announced that he would, in fact, make a third run for the White House.
Right before Trump walked on stage at Mar-A-Lago, though, the only Republican many believe can defeat the former President, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, gave the keynote address at a meeting of the Republican Governors Association in Orlando.
According to a report from Fox News, Governor DeSantis received a “hero’s welcome” as he took the opportunity to outline exactly how Republicans can take the winning strategy he developed in Florida and apply it nationally.
“Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida received a hero’s welcome on Tuesday night, as he addressed an audience of leading Republicans minutes before former President Donald Trump announced he was launching a 2024 White House bid,” Fox News reported. “DeSantis, who last week won a landside re-election victory for a second term steering Florida, garnered a standing ovation from the audience as he delivered a keynote conversation at the Republican Governors Association’s winter meeting in Orlando, according to multiple sources in the room.”
“According to one source, DeSantis spotlighted his “impressive re-election campaign” and how he won Miami-Dade County, connecting with Hispanic voters,” the report continued.
On top of that, another source told Fox News that DeSantis received an “enthusiastic” response as he “recapped the Florida blueprint and the path to winning Hispanics, women, and independents.”
Considering how poorly Republicans performed nationally with all three of those demographics, and how well Governor DeSantis performed, it would be wise for Republicans to listen to what he has to say on the topic.
While Democrats were able to win independent voters nationally by two points – likely causing Republicans to lose the Senate majority – the Florida Governor won 53% of independents in the Sunshine State, along with 57% of the Hispanics and 53% of women, as well.
It has been speculated that Republicans’ inability to win more independent voters can be chalked up to Trump, either because of his insistence on relitigating 2020, the looming prospect of another Presidential run, or simply because any time he’s involved in an election, the race becomes almost exclusively about whether voters like Trump or not.
Judging by the former President’s 2-for-16 record in U.S. Senate, Governor, and Secretary of State races in the Midterms, many say it’s difficult to argue against that thought process.
On the other hand, in four years’ time, Governor DeSantis went from winning a close race in 2018, to building the type of coalition America hasn’t seen since former President Ronald Reagan won 49 of 50 states in his 1984 re-election campaign.
DeSantis has proven that he can attract independent voters, female voters, Hispanic voters, Asian voters, and all sorts of other demographics Republicans have struggled with, while still sticking to a principled, America First agenda and rejecting Democrats’ radical woke agenda.
Nevertheless, there is still over a year before Republican Primary voters will head to the polls in the nation’s first primaries, so a lot can change, as has been the case in every election ever.
But unlike past elections, this Republican Presidential Primary is shaping up to be a two-horse race between two powerhouse candidates.
And ultimately, it’ll be up to GOP Primary voters to decide what’s best for the United States.
Political Animal News will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this ongoing story.
