Former President Donald Trump said he’s “very close to making a decision” about running for president in 2024 in what could become a rematch with the presumptive Democrat nominee, President Joe Biden.
According to The New Yorker, Mr. Trump exuded confidence when asked about pursuing the White House once again, asserting that he would earn the Republican nomination even if he was up against a popular candidate like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“I don’t know if Ron is running, and I don’t ask him,” Trump said. “It’s his prerogative. I think I would win.”
Mr. Trump has repeatedly hinted at running again in 2024, with his latest tease occurring during a speech in Southaven, Mississippi over the weekend.
“In 2024, we are going to take back our magnificent White House,” Trump said, as reported by Yahoo News.
Gov. DeSantis has been equally as coy when it comes to questions over the 2024 presidential election. Last week, when billionaire tech CEO Elon Musk said he would support DeSantis for president, the Florida governor chuckled and said, “You know, I’m focused on 2022, but with Elon Musk, what I would say is, you know, I welcome support from African Americans. What can I say.”
When it comes to the 2024 GOP presidential candidates, Trump and DeSantis appear to be neck and neck in conservative circles. Earlier this month, DeSantis edged out Trump in a straw poll conducted at the annual Western Conservative Summit in Colorado.
DeSantis earned 71 percent approval from the event’s attendees as a possible presidential candidate, whereas Trump netted 67 percent.
However, Trump took a commanding lead in a different survey conducted by Morning Consult, which showed more than half of Republicans still support Trump as their choice for the GOP’s 2024 presidential candidate.
“While political observers and operatives have taken a keen interest in the win-loss record of his endorsees in recent weeks, the latest survey is just another reminder of an uncomfortable truth facing the former president’s would-be challengers: It matters little that Trump has even a below-average endorsement victory rate as long as he remains the top 2024 choice for Republican primary voters around the country,” Morning Consult asserted.
Still, Trump has reportedly started asking his advisers to come up with ways to attack potential competitors like DeSantis, despite being long-time allies, once again indicating that Trump plans to run in 2024.
“I think DeSantis is the only one besides Trump who has a chance in hell. And I would bet a lot of money on that,” said Darren Blanton, a Dallas-based venture capitalist who served as an adviser to Trump’s transition. “At first I thought DeSantis had no chance because he seemed more like an introvert and strategist, but not a charismatic celebrity, and I pretty much told him that to his face. But he has really impressed me by how much better he has gotten.”