BREAKING: Ron DeSantis Suspends Presidential Campaign, Makes Endorsement

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended his campaign on Sunday, ahead of the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday.

“Over the past many months, Casey and I have traveled across the country to deliver a message of hope, that decline is a choice, and that we, in fact, can succeed again as a nation,” DeSantis said in a video message to supporters. "Nobody worked harder. And we left it all out on the field."

"Now following our second-place finish in Iowa, we have prayed and deliberated on the way forward,” he continued. "If there was anything I could do to produce a favorable outcome — more campaign stops, more interviews — I would do it.  But I can’t ask our supporters to volunteer their time and donate their resources if we don’t have a clear path to victory. Accordingly, I am today suspending my campaign."

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"I am proud to have delivered on 100% of my promises and I will not stop now,” DeSantis continued. "It’s clear to me that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance. They watched his presidency get stymied by relentless resistance and they see Democrats using lawfare to this day to attack him. While I have had disagreements with Donald Trump, such as on the coronavirus pandemic and his elevation of Anthony Fauci, Trump is superior to the current incumbent, Joe Biden. That is clear. I signed a pledge to support the Republican nominee and I will honor that pledge."

The timing of this announcement may come as a surprise to many, but DeSantis had seemingly conceded New Hampshire in order to have a strong showing in South Carolina—Nikki Haley’s home state where she served as governor. A second place finish for DeSantis in the state might have ended Haley’s campaign, but it was still quite clear that Republican voters overwhelmingly wanted Trump to finish what he started in his first term, and a viable path to winning the necessary delegates was too much to overcome. By dropping out now, it is likely that DeSantis' supporters will back Trump over Haley, crushing her chances in New Hampshire.

That appears to be the reason behind DeSantis’ decision.

“[Trump] has my endorsement because we can’t go back to the old Republican guard of yesteryear -- a repackaged form of warmed-over corporatism -- that Nikki Haley represents,” DeSantis said. "The days of putting Americans last, of kowtowing to large corporations, of caving to woke ideology, are over."

DeSantis’s dropping out now should clear an easy path for Donald Trump to win the nomination. Despite his endorsement, it remains to be seen whether DeSantis will join Trump on the campaign trail to help unite the party behind him.

DeSantis expressed gratitude to his family and his dedicated supporters who stood by his side, emphasizing the extraordinary efforts of volunteers who braved a blizzard in Iowa to knock on doors and make phone calls—a testament to their unwavering commitment.  

"Winston Churchill once remarked that 'success is not final, failure is not fatal — it is the courage to continue that counts,” he said. "While this campaign has ended, the mission continues. Down here in Florida, we will continue to show the country how to lead."

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”

- Winston Churchill pic.twitter.com/ECoR8YeiMm

— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) January 21, 2024

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