ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is preparing to launch his 2024 presidential campaign next week, numerous news outlets report.
The governor, who likely will spar much more directly with former President Donald Trump to become the Republican Party's nominee, will be better positioned to significantly fundraise and support a presidential bid for the White House following the announcement.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the news Wednesday evening.
DeSantis' candidacy is timed to coincide with a filing with the Federal Election Commission to make his run official, as well as a gathering in Miami of some of his top donors, according to CBS News. Sources told the outlet an official announcement is likely to happen thereafter in the governor's Tampa Bay-area hometown of Dunedin, Florida.
The governor's political operation on Monday vacated the Florida Republican Party's headquarters and moved into a new office in Tallahassee, CBS News reported, which trigged a federal campaign law that requires DeSantis to register as a candidate within the next two weeks.
A video will likely be published while announcing his candidacy, followed by several events in states whose primary voters will select their party's nominee, according to The New York Times.
10 Tampa Bay has reached out to the governor's office for comment.
Trump overwhelmingly appears to be voters' top candidate for the Republican ticket, trouncing DeSantis by 36 points — Trump at 56 percent with DeSantis at 20 percent, according to the latest RealClearPolitics polling average.
Recent polling showing Trump with a significant lead over DeSantis indicates the governor needs to work toward swaying those who back the former president but by walking a tight line that does not alienate them. DeSantis visited Iowa last weekend and made several indirect jabs at Trump, including:
"Governing is not about entertaining. Governing is not about building a brand or talking on social media and virtue signaling," DeSantis said. "It’s ultimately about winning and producing results."
Recent polls indicate that the matchup between President Joe Biden and Trump or DeSantis would be evenly split.