Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expanding his political travels as his poll numbers lag behind the expected presidential campaign, prompting early nominee states like Iowa. In a sign of his intentions to race for voters over him, he is visiting rural north-central Wisconsin on Saturday.
Declared candidates, including former President Donald J. Trump, are primarily focused on appearing in three states: Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
But DeSantis visited the convention center outside Wausau, a small town about 90 minutes west of Green Bay. voted hard Trump’s statements in the last two elections suggest the governor is preparing to challenge the former president more directly in decisive battleground states.
“It’s a smart move by DeSantis,” said Brandon Scholz, a lobbyist and former executive director of the Wisconsin Republican Party. “You don’t go to Wausau, Wisconsin to buy cheese curds. It shows he’s picking his spots well.”
For DeSantis, who plans to announce his 2024 bid in the coming weeks, a trip to the Midwest is a reset opportunity. A foreign trade mission late last month (which was intended to boost his foreign policy credentials) lukewarm reactionHis poll numbers against Trump are Consistently immersed.
DeSantis was fired on Friday Concern By Some Fellow Republicans That he was taking too long to announce his campaign.
“It’s chatter,” he said at a press conference at the Florida State Capitol.
At another point, he said of his political ambitions, “We’ll get to it relatively soon,” adding, “You’ll either have to put up with it or keep quiet.” rice field.
DeSantis was able to give him a notch, citing a busy two-month legislative session in Tallahassee that ended Friday. Conservative victory On issues dear to his party’s foundation, such as abortion, immigration, and education. When the congressman returns home, he plans to resume his out-of-state travel schedule, including stops in Illinois and Iowa next week.
After pushing Trump to the presidency in 2016, Wisconsin turned to Joseph R. Biden Jr. four years later. loss of bruises in last month’s consequential state Supreme Court race.
DeSantis’ Saturday event, an evening fundraiser for the Marathon County Republican Party where he will speak about his memoir, sold out with more than 560 attendees, according to organizers.
“This is not just a Marathon County issue,” said Kevin Harmening, the party’s chairman of the Marathon County Party. “We have travelers from Chicago, Minneapolis, Madison, Milwaukee and Green Bay,” he said. “I’m really interested in hearing from someone who represents the next generation of conservative thinking.”
Mr. DeSantis may take advantage of the Wisconsin dinner to highlight his family’s Midwestern roots. His mother is from Youngstown, Ohio and his wife Kaycee DeSantis is also from Ohio. His father grew up in western Pennsylvania.
DeSantis, who spent most of his life in Florida, recently Emphasis his relationship out of state.
“I grew up in Tampa Bay geographically, but culturally I grew up reflecting the working-class communities of western Pennsylvania and northeastern Ohio. down to the expectation of earning an income,” DeSantis said in his memoir. The courage to be free” is being rolled out nationwide. “This made me a God-fearing, hard-working, and America-loving person.”
Saturday’s fundraiser is a non-expensive event, allowing DeSantis to speak directly to party supporters. Individual tickets are $75. A table of eight was $1,000. Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany, who represents the region in Congress and has not expressed endorsement of the president, introduces Mr. DeSantis.
DeSantis’ visit to Wisconsin could be another trigger comparison Between him and Scott Walker, the state’s former governor and frontrunner in the 2016 Republican presidential primary, ended his campaign just two months later. Like Mr. DeSantis, Mr. Walker was a young and popular governor. But he stumbled early in the campaign and saw his star quickly dim as Trump outshone his ruling rivals.
In Wisconsin, where the 2024 Republican National Convention will also be held in Milwaukee, Mr. DeSantis is about to step straight into the heart of President Trump’s country.
The former president held several rallies in rural Upstate during his previous campaign, where he handily defeated both Hillary Clinton and Biden. DeSantis has largely avoided mentioning Trump by name so far, but the super PAC that supports the governor’s campaign has stepped up its attacks.
“Stubborn people here still love Trump,” said Linda Plain, a Republican who helped organize Saturday’s event. I know a lot of people who don’t want to vote for.”
Prehn said she didn’t know much about DeSantis, but her friends in Florida praised how he handled the coronavirus pandemic. recent devastating hurricanes.
“People want to see him,” she said.
A recent poll of Wisconsin voters found Mr. DeSantis outperformed Mr. Trump in a head-to-head confrontation with Mr. Biden, according to Public Opinion Strategies, a Republican pollster.
Still, Trump supporters are mobilizing to challenge Mr. DeSantis in Wisconsin. Republicans in nearby Waupaca County posted an invitation on their Facebook page calling for a rally in support of Trump outside the dinner where Mr. DeSantis will speak.
Posting “Come with me” Said“For a patriotic rally to show Wisconsin is Trump’s country!” report By NBC News.
On Saturday, DeSantis will likely make his case to party activists by praising the results of the Florida legislature.
He told reporters on Friday that he’s “probably 99% accomplished” on his agenda. High-profile defamation bill failure That would have made it easier for private citizens to sue the press for defamation, a measure some right-wing news outlets had opposed.
“Look, it’s defamation. It’s a touchy subject,” DeSantis said. “Obviously, we don’t want to encourage baseless lawsuits. That’s totally unacceptable.”
As DeSantis makes positive arguments for his candidacy, Never Back Down, the major super PAC that supports his candidacy, is attacking Trump.
The group advertisement Last week we featured the actor putting a fresh bumper sticker on his truck.
The new sticker says “DeSantis for President”.
The man places it directly over Trump’s 2016 campaign ragged decal.
