21 January 2024 , 21:11
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has officially announced the end of his bid to become president.
Considered once a major rival to Trump in the Republican primaries, DeSantis made the announcement that he's out of the running for the 2024 presidential election just two days ahead of the New Hampshire primary.
Initially seen as a contender who could challenge Donald Trump, the conservative Floridian was defeated by Nikki Haley at the Iowa caucus and is currently trailing her in New Hampshire polls.
While Trump and Haley are busy fighting for supremacy in New Hampshire with numerous rallies and campaign events, DeSantis decided to bypass it and head for South Carolina - though things didn't go as he planned.
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DeSantis has ended his bid to become president (AFP via Getty Images)Campaign finance records reveal that MAGA Inc. spent over $23 million on advertisements against DeSantis, while the super PAC supporting Nikki Haley, the former U.N. Ambassador, put substantial efforts into defeating DeSantis in Iowa, as NBC reported.
DeSantis announced his withdrawal from the race in a video posted on X, previously known as Twitter, accompanied by a quote from Winston Churchill: "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." - Winston Churchill
In the newly released video, DeSantis opened up about his campaign and why he decided to join public service. He said government spending is sky-high and it's time to bring it down, whilst also protecting "America's children from being indoctrinated."
His rival Nikki Haley, on the other hand, has plunged a lot of time and cash into a New Hampshire campaign, attracting so much attention that Donald Trump spent all morning badmouthing her over Truth Social, the conservatives' own version of Twitter. However, DeSantis skipped this key primary opting to focus on South Carolina instead.
But even with the money and effort channeled into South Carolina, their top politicians have already pledged support to Trump well before their primary vote.
Over the weekend, leaders like McMaster and Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette journeyed to New Hampshire joining Trump at a rally. Sen. Tim Scott, who hails from South Carolina too, backed Trump at another event in New Hampshire the previous night.
Donald Trump is in pole position to be the Republican candidate for president (No credit)Despite the funds splashed by Trump's campaign and being labelled 'DeSanctimonious' - slurs thrown by his opponents which seemed to have derailed his once-intimidating political career.
The ambitious governor had entered the 2024 presidential race with several plus points in his bid against Trump, and early primary polls did suggest DeSantis was in a pretty robust position to take on just that.
He and his supporters gathered a political fortune of over $100 million, and he had a notable record on issues that matter to many conservatives, such as abortion and the teaching of race and gender issues in schools.
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