Not dropping out yet: DeSantis still sees ‘pathway’ to nomination

MANCHESTER, N.H. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he believes he still has a shot at winning the Republican presidential nomination.

His optimistic outlook persisted even as he is poised to place a distant third in the primary here on Tuesday and is running in third place in the next big contest in South Carolina.

“As long as I’m in the hunt, that tells me I’m seeing a pathway,” Mr. DeSantis told reporters Friday at St. Anselm College. “The minute I don’t — then I’m not just going to do this just for my health.”

Mr. DeSantis is holding several town hall events in the Granite State on Friday but will spend the weekend campaigning in South Carolina, where his poll numbers are better but he’s still trailing prohibitive fron-trunner Donald Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.

Mr. DeSantis stopped by St. Anselm College, where he had been slated to debate Ms. Haley. She backed out of the debate and said she would attend only if Mr. Trump participated. The event was canceled.

“I think you should get out there and prove to the voters that you can take the fire,” Mr. DeSantis said.

He downplayed the former president’s blowout win in the Iowa caucuses and said turnout was depressed because Mr. Trump had dampened enthusiasm and voters, he said, “bought into the idea of the inevitability” of Mr. Trump’s nomination.

Mr. Trump got 51% of the vote in Iowa. Mr. DeSantis placed second with about 20% and Ms. Haley narrowly trailed in third place with 19%.

In New Hampshire, Mr. Trump leads Ms. Haley in the most recent polls.

The Suffolk University tracking poll showed Mr. Trump with 51.8% of the vote and Ms. Haley with 35.4%. Mr. DeSantis placed third with 6.4%.

Mr. DeSantis steered clear of directly attacking Ms. Haley. Instead, he warned that Mr. Trump, as the GOP presidential nominee, will stir so much opposition among Democratic voters that they will swamp the polls in November to give President Biden a second term and flip Congress to the Democrats.

“The greatest turnout machine that the Democratic Party has is not a single living Democrat. Heck, they can resurrect JFK. He would not energize Democrats the way Donald Trump does,” Mr. DeSantis said. “They’re gonna run that playbook and that gives them their best chance to be able to hold on to power.”