Ron DeSantis launches presidential campaign: Is he the favorite against Trump?

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has filed paperwork declaring his candidacy for president. By throwing his hat in the ring, he is directly challenging former President Donald Trump, the current front-runner, to become the Republican Party’s nominee in the 2024 race.

DeSantis told his top donors in a phone call that there were only three “credible” candidates in the race for the White House in 2024. They include President Joe Biden, Trump and himself. However, only two would be electable in the general election and he doesn’t think Trump is one of them.

“Based on all the data in the swing states, which is not great for the former president and probably insurmountable because people aren’t going to change their view of him,” DeSantis told donors and supporters. So is he right?

Is Ron DeSantis the favorite against Trump?

While the 2024 Election Day is still just under a year and a half away and a lot can happen between now and then, DeSantis will first have to face Trump and the other Republican contenders in the primaries. As it stands now, the former president has a very large lead in the polls over the Florida governor, 38 points to be exact. That gap has been growing even as Trump’s legal troubles mount.

Besides this commanding lead, Trump has also wrapped up the endorsement of over 60 Republican governors and members of Congress. If history foretells the outcome of the GOP primary, that amount of backing from the party at this stage in the race means that the former president will get another shot on the party’s ticket to challenge Biden for the White House again.

If you’re a gambler and put money on DeSantis to win the 2024 presidential election you would either be flushing your money down the toilet, or, should the stars align, enjoy a bountiful windfall. Florida Bet gives him odds of +500 with a 16.7 percent chance of winning. Trump currently has a 28.6 percent chance and Biden a 40 percent chance.

DeSantis team think that they can win

Despite Trump rising in the polls, Team DeSantis are still optimistic about his chances. Going back to the polling that DeSantis told his donors and supporters about, they show that Republicans want to move on from Trump.

And despite the former president’s attacks on the Florida Governor, they haven’t affected people’s opinion of him. Those attempts to smother a DeSantis run before it gets going are a sign to them that the governor has a real chance.

However, DeSantis won’t have much time to consolidate his position as the alternative to the former president and make it a one-on-one primary challenge. That was part of the reason that Trump was able to snatch the nomination in 2016. With so many candidates, none of them could muster enough support to really take on Trump. But the task of pulling together an anti-Trump coalition will not be easy.