Chris Sununu says Ron DeSantis could BEAT Donald Trump ‘hands down’ in New Hampshire

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis would win New Hampshire’s 2024 Republican primary “hands down” if it were held today, the state’s Republican governor said Sunday.

Gov. Chris Sununu said the Sunshine State Republican is “obviously” running for president, despite not having formally declared his intention to do so, a limbo that angered former President Donald Trump.

But Sununu said the former president would “probably” not see the success he had in his 2016 campaign, when he bested a crowded field of more experienced Republicans to clinch the nomination.

“One of the reasons he became the Republican nominee in 2016 is because he won the first statewide primary,” Sununu told CNN’s State of the Union, referring to New Hampshire.

‘Could you do that again? Oh he could. I do not think it does.

DeSantis’ refusal thus far to rule out a 2024 primary challenge against Trump clearly angered the former commander in chief, who called DeSantis “disloyal” on Saturday.

Multiple polls show DeSantis as the clear runner-up right now, while some show him surpassing Trump as the GOP front-runner.

Sununu called Trump’s Saturday address to his state, his first formal campaign event since declaring it in November, “mundane.”

“He read his teleprompter, stuck to the talking points, left,” the moderate Republican governor said.

“So it’s not really bringing that fire, that energy, I think, that a lot of people saw in 2016. I think, in a lot of ways, it was a little disappointing for some people.’

Meanwhile, DeSantis has seen his Republican star grow throughout the Biden administration with his vocal opposition to Joe Biden’s progressive policies.

He also made a name for himself with Trump’s MAGA base by wading into the culture wars with LGBTQ-targeted legislation and taking on Critical Race Theory in schools.

But as for the state of the 2024 Republican primary so far, Sununu suggested there’s no question it’s a two-man race.

He said Trump would likely not win the New Hampshire Republican primary if it were held today, despite winning it in 2016.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has angered Trump over his reluctance to scrap his own 2024 presidential bid.

“Obviously DeSantis and Trump are the two candidates whether he declares himself or not,” Sununu said of the Florida governor.

‘Ron DeSantis is looking to run for president, which is fine. And he would probably win New Hampshire right now, hands down,” Sununu said.

Although he added: “I think other candidates will look to enter this spring or in the summer.”

And Sununu may be one of those candidates.

Asked directly if he was “considering” a 2024 bid, Sununu bluntly said: “Yes.”

“I mean, obviously people are talking about it, but I don’t really have a timetable,” the moderate said.

“I spend a lot of time, naturally, trying to grow the party, as Republicans, talk to independents, talk to the next generation of potential Republican voters that no one is really reaching out to right now.”

Trump has made no secret of his disdain for DeSantis’ possible White House ambitions. He has branded him at separate times as ‘Ron DeSanctimonious’ and ‘fake’.

He fired another warning shot for the Florida governor to stay out of the race when he spoke to CNN and Politico reporters on his campaign plane Saturday.

Trump officially kicked off his third presidential campaign with stops in the early primary states of New Hampshire and South Carolina.

‘When I hear that [DeSantis] might [run] I think it is very unfair,’ he told the two media on his plane.

Once again, he also took credit for DeSantis’ narrow victory in 2018, which then led to a landslide reelection in 2022.

“Ron wouldn’t have been governor if it wasn’t for me,” Trump said.