As the competition intensifies in the Republican presidential primary, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis appears undeterred by the fact that Nikki Haley, former Governor of South Carolina and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has reportedly garnered support from some of DeSantis’s major contributors.
In response to Laura Ingraham’s inquiry on Fox News about potential donor loss to Nikki Haley, Governor Ron DeSantis pointed out to Ingraham that his campaign has consistently surpassed Haley’s in fundraising efforts.
During the recent quarter, DeSantis secured $15 million in funding, surpassing Haley’s $11 million. It’s worth noting that in the preceding quarter, DeSantis had garnered $20 million, prompting speculation about a potential decline in momentum for DeSantis’s campaign in the primary race.
DeSantis further highlighted to Ingraham that he opts to follow his convictions rather than catering excessively to influential donors, even confronting well-known entities like Disney and challenging Big Pharma. He stressed his refusal to “kowtow” to donors in order to secure their backing.
According to FiveThirtyEight, a website renowned for monitoring and dissecting national polls, former President Trump commands backing from almost 70% of Republican voters. In the second position, candidate DeSantis lags significantly with only 12.4%, and Haley follows in third place, securing nearly 10%.
The endorsement for Nikki Haley has been declared by the Americans for Prosperity Action Super PAC, primarily funded by the billionaire Charles Koch. In their statement, the Super PAC expressed that Haley embodies a forward-looking and optimistic vision for the future, symbolizing a new era of leadership.
While Koch and AFP have shown backing for DeSantis in the past, private deliberations prompted the team to endorse Haley in the current election cycle. Despite public denials from the DeSantis campaign, additional reports suggest that when DeSantis and his team learned of AFP’s endorsement for Haley, they reacted strongly, expressing intense displeasure.
Although initially regarded by many as the strongest contender to face Trump, DeSantis has encountered difficulties in recent polls and appears to have faltered in the momentum of the race.
