One of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ three congressional endorsers is telling him to launch his 2024 campaign in the middle of the Legislative Session.
U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky said DeSantis shouldn’t delay.
“I would prefer him to be in the race right now. In fact, I encouraged him to get in the race right now,” the Congressman told the New York Post.
Massie believes the race is still, for now, a “heads-up race between Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis.”
“The urgency I feel is, the more cats and dogs that get in the race, the more they could siphon from Ron DeSantis,” he added.
Massie also wonders why the Governor is touring the country and the world while leaving the decision to run in suspense.
“It looks and feels a little odd for him to act like a candidate with the trips and the speaking tours without actually being a candidate,” Massie told the Post. “That’s fine for a while, but I don’t think you want to overdo it from an optics standpoint.”
DeSantis is in Japan Monday, where he said he’s “not a candidate” when asked about his slump in polls against the former President.
Kentucky polling is especially brutal for DeSantis, suggesting Massie isn’t providing a home state boost.
A survey released by WJHL-TV of Johnson City, Tennessee, and Emerson College Polling shows Trump is the choice of 62% of respondents, with DeSantis pulling 23% support, good for a distant second place. Meanwhile, 5% of voters want someone else, while 4% pick former United Nations envoy Nikki Haley and former Vice President Mike Pence.
Trump leads with Kentucky Republicans of all ages, with respondents between 18-49 backing Trump over DeSantis, 55% to 27%. Among the over-50 crowd, Trump’s lead stretches to 66% to 20%.
The poll was in the field April 10 and 11, a week after Trump’s arrest on a 34-count federal indictment.
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