DeSantis Says He Could Win in 2024, but Stops Short of Announcing a Run

According to Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis, he has the ability to beat President Joe Biden in the 2024 elections if he chooses to run. However, he didn’t explicitly confirm whether he was going to enter the race or not in an interview for Fox News that is scheduled to be aired on March 23. He pointed out that if he ran a race, he would be up against Biden, since he thinks that he failed the country.

“If I were to run, I’m running against Biden,” DeSantis said. “Like we [him and former President Donald Trump] are competing for the Republican, potentially, I get that, but ultimately you know the guy I’m gonna focus on is Biden because I think he’s failed the country. I think the country wants a change. I think they want a fresh start and a new direction and so we’ll be very vocal about that.”

When asked about his prospects of winning the 2024 presidential race against Biden, he expressed confidence in his ability to win by highlighting his success in the midterm election.

“I won with independents by 18 points,” he said. “and so that will be the same formula that we would take, and honestly forget about me, I think anybody should take the formula like that nationally.”

DeSantis on ‘Woke Ideology’

DeSantis went on to praise Florida’s stand against the so-called “woke” ideology. DeSantis has recently proposed blocking state colleges from having programs on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and the neo-Marxist ideology, critical race theory (CRT), which the Biden administration has prioritized.

During a recent discussion on CRT and DEI, the governor declared that Florida will “not going to back down to the woke mob,” adding that students will “receive an education, not a political indoctrination.”

Biden has criticized Florida’s efforts to prevent what DeSantis calls efforts to “castrate” young children, branding them “close to sinful.”

On Monday, Florida voted to approve a six-week abortion ban, although the bill includes exceptions for rape and incest.

‘I Can’t Worry About the Political Fallout’

The bill, which still needs to be considered in another Senate committee before it heads to the full Senate, runs contrary to Biden’s efforts to bolster access to abortions.

Biden and DeSantis have also been at odds over a number of other key issues, including COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Ultimately, DeSantis believes being Florida’s governor has prepared him for a possible presidency.

“What I’ve been called upon to do as governor is make the right decisions when it wasn’t easy,” DeSantis said. “I can’t worry about getting criticized. I can’t worry about the political fallout.”

DeSantis’s remarks come as he and Trump remain ahead in many 2024 polls. However, DeSantis has not yet announced his candidacy, and Trump is being investigated by a New York grand jury over his alleged payment to pornographic actress Stormy Daniels.

DeSantis appeared to defend Trump, who has publicly criticized him in the past, during a press conference on Monday in which he took aim at District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who is leading the investigation.

“I have not seen any facts yet, and so I don’t know what’s going to happen but I do know this: The Manhattan district attorney is a Soros-funded prosecutor and so he, like other Soros-funded prosecutors, they weaponize their office to impose a political agenda on society at the expense of the rule of law and public safety,” the governor said.