Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is being confronted with polls that show him trailing former President Donald Trump in the 2024 Republican primary.
During a trip to Japan on Monday, a reporter asked, “Polls show you falling behind Trump. Any thoughts?”
DeSantis shared four words as an initial response to the question, “I’m not a candidate.”
“So, we’ll see if and when that changes,” he added.
Watch the video below:
Reporter: “Polls show you falling behind Trump. Any thoughts?”@GovRonDeSantis: “I’m not a candidate. So, we’ll see if and when that changes.”
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) April 24, 2023
pic.twitter.com/KIhWdF5wiV
After his double-digit re-election victory in November, polls appeared to show DeSantis had an edge over Trump in the primary.
However, since then, the situation appears to have reversed, with some surveys showing him trailing the 45th president by double digits.
The apparent reversal of fortunes in the polls has prompted several articles suggesting the governor’s campaign may be running out of fuel before it even gets off the ground.
Trump took a shot at DeSantis over his dip in the polls.
“I should call him rocketman. But now he’s a rocketman that’s crashing. His polls are terrible. I’m leading him in every state,” the former president said during an appearance on the “Full Send Podcast.”
DeSantis has not announced a campaign, but he is seen as a potential candidate.
However, his allies reportedly do not expect him to announce a campaign until May when the legislative session in Florida ends.
A poll released by The Wall Street Journal on Friday showed Trump leading a 12-person primary field, winning 48% of the vote.
Meanwhile, DeSantis won 24%.
In a general match-up, 48% of voters said they would definitely or probably vote for President Joe Biden, while 45% said the same of Trump.
But in a match-up with DeSantis, 45% of voters said they would definitely or probably vote for Biden while 48% said the same of the Florida governor.