WASHINGTON, Jan 22 – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis dropped out of the 2024 presidential race on Sunday, just two days before the New Hampshire primary, and endorsed former President Donald Trump.
“We don’t have a clear path to victory,” DeSantis said in a video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
In the video, DeSantis said he was endorsing Trump because it had “become clear” that “a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance.”
DeSantis’ announcement came just a few days after 30-percentage-point loss to Trump in the Iowa caucuses. Trump was leading with 51 percent, and DeSantis came in second with 21 percent.
His departure just two days before the pivotal New Hampshire primary leaves former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley as Trump’s last remaining long-shot challenger for the Republican nomination.
Trump is holding a double-digit lead over Haley in New Hampshire, according to polls, and his campaign hopes a second consecutive win will make his eventual nomination all but inevitable.
Trump has maintained an iron grip on the Republican electorate despite facing four criminal prosecutions. He has pleaded not guilty in all the cases.
Haley drew cheers when she announced that DeSantis had dropped out at a campaign event in Seabrook, New Hampshire.
“For now, I’ll leave you with this: May the best woman win,” she said.
In a statement after DeSantis’ announcement, the Trump campaign thanked him for the endorsement and urged Republicans to coalesce behind him.
“Nikki Haley is the candidate of the globalists and Democrats who will do everything to stop the America First movement,” the campaign said.
The winner of this year’s Republican nominating contests will take on President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee.
