Free Republic

The group of Ron DeSantis’ top donors and supporters gathering in Palm Beach, Fla., this weekend includes some longtime backers of former President Donald Trump. The Florida governor’s three-day retreat at the Four Seasons hotel — just four miles down the road from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate — kicked off Friday evening with a cocktail reception and dinner for the approximately 150 attendees. The event, billed as a celebration of the “Florida blueprint,” precedes a likely DeSantis presidential bid that would pit him against Trump. And the roster of people there shows that the governor is appealing to major GOP figures...

America is beginning to take the next election cycle a bit more seriously these days, as the Republican field begins to see its first competitors step up.President Trump was the first candidate to officially throw his hat in the ring way back in November 2022. Nikki Haley has begun her bid for the White House, and investment firm manager Vivek Ramaswamy has also recently jumped in the race.Republican voter enthusiasm at the moment seems to be pointing to a match-up that isn’t even a sure thing at this point – Donald Trump vs. Rick DeSantis. Even the left wing media...

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) hinted on Monday that he will make a decision on a 2024 presidential run after the state’s legislative session wraps up in May, giving the clearest timeline yet of when he could enter the race. Asked on “Fox & Friends” when he might decide on a White House bid, DeSantis mapped out the coming months, saying that he would embark on a tour to promote his new book, “The Courage to be Free,” and work through the Florida legislature’s regular session, which begins in early March. “We’re going to sell some books, we’re going to...

“Moving Florida Governor Ron DeSantis into position for 2024, with careful branding and management, is one large Republican Club operation done with forethought and intent.” ..... Snip..... Going all the way back to December 2021, when DeSantis handler Christina Pushaw set about the first steps of inviting conservative influencers into the DeSantis orbit in Florida, a meeting that took place on January 6, 2022, nothing from that moment to this was organic or unplanned. Moving Florida Governor Ron DeSantis into position for 2024 with careful branding and management, is one large Republican Club operation done with forethought and intent. Everything...

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is on the cusp of making a final decision on a 2024 presidential run. Several Republicans familiar with the deliberations say that DeSantis is almost certain to seek the GOP’s presidential nomination. His advisers have begun reaching out to and interviewing potential hires for a campaign and are gaming out the best time to announce his intentions. A formal campaign launch is still months away, they say, and won’t likely come until after the state legislature wraps up its regular session in May. Two sources familiar with the plans said that the Florida governor could announce...

...amid speculation he could be gearing up for a 2024 presidential campaign. A person familiar with the matter says the autobiography is set to be released on February 28 and will be titled "The Courage to be Free: Florida's Blueprint for America's Revival."

In a hypothetical presidential matchup, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis would garner more support against President Joe Biden than former President Donald Trump would, a new poll from Marquette University finds. Forty-five percent of registered voters preferred DeSantis, versus 38% of registered voters who preferred Biden in a hypothetical matchup between the two. In a hypothetical contest between Biden and Trump, the two were even, each gaining 40% of registered voters' preference. Just among Republican voters and independents who lean Republican, DeSantis had a slightly higher favorability rating. Seventy-one percent of those voters said they have a favorable view of...

- Trump took swipes on social media at potential 2024 rivals Govs. DeSantis and Youngkin. - It's been speculated that the Florida and Virginia governors could seek the GOP nomination in 2024. - Though he has not said he's running for re-election, Trump once again teased he may make another White House run.

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the suspension of a state attorney on Thursday morning in news his team teased the night before. DeSantis announced that Florida state attorney Andrew Warren would be suspended, effective immediately, for failing to enforce the state's laws dealing with crime and regulating abortion . "Our government is a government of laws, not a government of men," DeSantis said. "We've seen across the country over the last few years individual prosecutors take it upon themselves to determine which laws they like and will enforce, and which laws they don't like and don't enforce."

Suffolk University has a new poll out, including a question on Republican voter preferences for the 2024 presidential election, and while it is noteworthy that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is within 9 points of former President Donald Trump at 43%-34%, what is more striking is how little support the other possible candidates get. Vice President Mike Pence is at 7%, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WV) at 3%, and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie at 1%. Contrast DeSantis’s strong second-place rank to where Republicans were at this point in August 2015. Trump was in front at 22%, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush...

The concept of America First embodies the American people’s aspirational goals to see policies that primarily benefit them, especially in an era when it feels as if they are being overshadowed by special-interest groups, corporate lobbyists and foreign agendas. It’s undoubtedly linked with President Donald Trump, but the question remains for the 2024 election: Can this idea thrive with someone else’s leadership?

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis called out China for reportedly buying up massive amounts of property in the Sunshine State, telling "The Ingraham Angle" he signed legislation to curb what he deemed "undue influence from rogue states" like the Chinese Communist Party.

Ahead of the rally former President Donald Trump was scheduled to have in Arizona (later postponed due to the death of Ivana Trump), the Fox News website posted a stunning three-minute video featuring a host of Trump supporters in Maricopa County talking about ditching him in 2024 for Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL). The incredible montage features a group of Arizona voters who — save for one identified as Beverly who enthusiastically backed a Trump 2024 bid — all said they wanted to see Trump sit it out next time and identified DeSantis as the person they want to take over...

Way right Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday claimed he has “woke math’s” number, and he doesn’t like it. He railed about the mysterious mathematics Friday in a speech in Tampa to a group of conservative Moms for Liberty who are opposed to several aspects of education. DeSantis was unable to elucidate exactly what “woke math’ is. He indicated that it’s math with little regard for correct calculations, which was news to the world. “I’m just thinking to myself like, 2 + 2 equals 4. It’s not 2 + 2 equals: Well how do you feel about that? Is...

TAMPA, Fla. -- Before a friendly audience of conservative moms, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday excoriated political opponents of wanting to “sexualize” children and warp kids’ understanding of race and history. The charged campaign rhetoric in remarks to the Moms for Liberty group was usual fare for DeSantis — and a major reason why he’s in the top tier of potential GOP presidential candidates who now sits on an unprecedented $130 million war chest. But the political backdrop was as atypical as unexpected: The day before his speech, one of the national teacher unions that opposes him released a...

The 30-second spot scheduled to air on Fox News starting Monday takes shots at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his policies, while drawing a contrast with California.

Based on a casual reading of the polls, Donald Trump looks to have smooth sailing to the Republican presidential nomination in 2024 and the chance to erase the stink of losing to Joe Biden that he so covets. But if that’s the case, why does Trump seem so panicky these days? Simple: Trump is in trouble, and — when you dig into the numbers — his grip on the GOP nomination is getting more tenuous. It is Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) who has all the momentum.

DURHAM, N.H. – A public opinion survey in New Hampshire, the state that for a century has held the first primary in presidential race, indicates that Florida Gov. Gov. Ron DeSantis has a razor-thin margin over former President Donald Trump in a hypothetical 2024 GOP primary match-up. According to polling numbers released on Wednesday by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, 39% of likely Republican primary voters in the Granite State would support the first-term Florida governor, with 37% backing the former president. Respondents were provided a list of potential contenders for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, and DeSantis...

A public opinion survey in New Hampshire, the state that for a century has held the first primary in presidential race, indicates that Florida Gov. Gov. Ron DeSantis has a razor-thin margin over former President Donald Trump in a hypothetical 2024 GOP primary match-up. According to polling numbers released on Wednesday by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, 39% of likely Republican primary voters in the Granite State would support the first-term Florida governor, with 37% backing the former president. Respondents were provided a list of potential contenders for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, and DeSantis margin was well...

Former President Trump isn’t sure if Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will run for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024, but he says he’s confident that he would beat him if he does. “I don’t know if Ron is running, and I don’t ask him,” Trump told The New Yorker in an interview. “It’s his prerogative. I think I would win.”