Ron DeSantis dismisses bad poll numbers

Ron DeSantis blamed his poor polling in the Republican presidential primary on “corporate media” not running him for president and said he’s in it for the long haul, not looking to “correct” his numbers on this moment.

The governor of Florida is 32 points behind rival Donald Trump RealClearPolitics Poll Average. The former president also leads in key early voting states, Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

“I run to win in January and February. I’m not running for the polls right now,” DeSantis told Fox News Thursday night.

DeSantis shrugged off Trump’s lead, arguing that he is the person who can beat President Joe Biden in the general election.

“If you look at the people like the corporate media, who do they go to? Who wouldn’t they want as a nominee? They’re after me,” he said.

“If you look at all these people who are responsible for many of the ills in our society, they’re targeting me as the person they don’t want to see as a candidate. And so this campaign is just getting started, but I think it’s pretty clear that I’m the guy who can’t just beat Biden, I’m the guy who can beat the left on all these different issues.”

He also referenced his “war on wake” he started in Florida during the COVID pandemic when he kept the state open despite medical advice and pushed for parental supervision in the state’s schools.

Of all the Republicans in the country, I have the best track record of beating the left on issue after issue. And we will defend that case for the next six or seven months.”

DeSantis leads Trump in one area: fundraising.

His campaign raised $20 million in the second quarter. In addition, a pro-DeSantis super PAC, Never Back Down, has raised $130 million since its launch in March.

Trump’s campaign and his joint fundraising committee, Save America, raised a combined total of $35 million in the second quarter of the year. The $35 million is nearly double the $18.8 million Trump raised in the first three months of the year after announcing his 2024 White House run in mid-November.

The three-month period runs from April 1 through June 30.

DeSantis also argued to Fox that he is the most incoming Republican nominee.

“I’ve also been attacked more than anyone else,” he said. Donald Trump spent over $20 million attacking me. That’s more than he spent supporting Republican candidates in last year’s midterms.”

And he said he was the only candidate among the GOP contenders who could appeal to independent voters.

“At the end of the day, people want to win, and you can’t win with Republican voters alone. I think we showed in Florida that if you want a big win, you have to win independent voters. You have to win over people who have not voted for our party in recent cycles,” he said.

DeSantis’ argument will be tested on August 23, the day of the first Republican presidential primary debate. It will take place in Milwaukee.