Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida is issuing a warning to Republicans that they will lose if the 2024 election is a referendum on former President Donald Trump.
Mr. DeSantis points to an alternative route: Nominate him to face off against President Biden.
“I think a referendum on Joe Biden means we win if I’m the candidate,” Mr. DeSantis said Tuesday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “I think a referendum on Donald Trump, if that’s it, then I think the Democrats would win.”
Mr. DeSantis has been arguing for months that he’s the most electable Republican and is pairing that with a sharper warning that Mr. Trump’s popularity with the primary electorate does not extend to the general populace.
“There are millions of voters out there who don’t like what Biden’s doing, think that the country’s going in the wrong direction. They want to vote for a Republican,” Mr. DeSantis said. “But once it’s Donald Trump, that’s just a deal breaker for them. They just won’t do it.”
The message has yet to move the needle in a significant way in the polls.
But Mr. DeSantis is betting the warnings will resonate with voters over time — particularly for the Jan. 15 causes in Iowa, where he and his allies are investing oodles of time and resources.
Mr. DeSantis says Republicans should have learned a lesson from the past three disappointing election cycles where voters rejected Mr. Trump and the former president’s acolytes.
Mr. DeSantis has contrasted that with the success the GOP has had on his watch in Florida, where he led the party to big wins in the 2022 midterm elections.
Mr. DeSantis said Republicans should give voters the “fresh start” they have been craving.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.