Trump's chief pollster explains why Ron DeSantis may be 'inheriting' Trump's role in the GOP
It looks like the political future is bright for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), NBC News reports.
DeSantis may be a polarizing figure overall — it's safe to say he doesn't have many fans in the Democratic Party — but he does appear to have high approval marks across the board in the GOP. He's reportedly garnering interest from donors outside the Sunshine State, and even former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) says he's a "fan."
If DeSantis does decide to run for president in 2024, he'll likely get a boost thanks to his popularity among former President Donald Trump's supporters. Trump's chief pollster from 2016 and 2020, Tony Fabrizio, thinks DeSantis may be the one to fill the void if Trump doesn't take another shot at the White House. "When you look under the hood of those numbers," Fabrizio told NBC News, referring to a recent survey that showed DeSantis was neck and neck with former Vice President Mike Pence in a hypothetical Trump-less 2024 GOP primary, "DeSantis garners a lot of support from Trump voters in the absence of Trump."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Fabrizio believes the coverage of DeSantis' controversial COVID-19 pandemic decisions helped fuel his national rise. "As the media beat him up as the anti-[New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D)] and DeSantis stood up for himself, voters liked that," Fabrizio said. "They associated that type of scrappiness and speaking your mind with Donald Trump. He is inheriting a lot of that." Read more at NBC News.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
'Solitude has become a notable, and worrisome, trend of our times'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
Blake Lively accuses rom-com costar of smear job
Speed Read The actor accused Justin Baldoni, her director and costar on "It Ends With Us," of sexual harassment and a revenge campaign
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Germany arrests anti-Islam Saudi in SUV attack
Speed Read The attack on a Christmas market in Magdeburg left five people dead and more than 200 wounded
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Top Russian general killed in Moscow blast
Speed Read A remote-triggered bomb killed Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, the head of Russia's Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defense
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Why Assad fell so fast
The Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
By The Week UK Published
-
NATO chief urges Europe to arm against Russia
Speed Read Mark Rutte said Putin wants to 'wipe Ukraine off the map' and might come for other parts of Europe next
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New Syria government takes charge, urging 'stability'
Speed Read The rebel forces that ousted Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad announced an interim government
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Romania's election rerun
The Explainer Shock result of presidential election has been annulled following allegations of Russian interference
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Russia's shadow war in Europe
Talking Point Steering clear of open conflict, Moscow is slowly ratcheting up the pressure on Nato rivals to see what it can get away with.
By The Week UK Published
-
South Korea roiled by short-lived martial law
Speed Read President Yoon Suk Yeol's imposition of martial law was a 'clear violation of the constitution,' said the opposition parties who have moved to impeach him
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Syrian rebels seize Aleppo in surprise offensive
Speed Read The rebels made gains against President Bashar al-Assad’s forces and reignited Syria's 13-year-old civil war
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published