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Utah Sen Mike Lee endorses Donald Trump for president, hurts Florida Gov Ron DeSantis
As Utah leans towards Donald Trump, the battle for GOP dominance intensifies. Can Ron DeSantis regain momentum?
On Friday night, Donald Trump received a major endorsement for his 2024 presidential bid from Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, a blow to the campaign of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has been trailing Trump in the polls.
Lee praised Trump on Fox News, saying, “Look, whether you like Donald Trump or not, whether you agree with everything he says, or not, he is our one opportunity to choose order over chaos and putting America first over America last. It’s time to get behind him.”
He added, “If you are not content with the status quo, the status quo of lawlessness, of putting America last. It’s time to get behind Donald Trump and I wholeheartedly endorse Donald J. Trump in his bid for the presidency in 2024.”
DeSantis, who has been positioning himself as the heir apparent to Trump’s populist base, has seen his popularity wane in early-voting states, especially in Utah, where Lee’s endorsement could sway many voters.
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Recent polls puts DeSantis on the defensive
According to a September poll by the Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics, Trump leads the Republican field in Utah with 33% support, followed by DeSantis with 15% and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley with 11%.
Florida Gov. has tried to appeal to Utah voters by claiming that Florida shares the same values of freedom and conservatism as the Beehive State. At the Utah Republican Convention in April, he said, “I think underlying the success of Utah has been a commitment to freedom like Florida. Utah proves that freedom works.”
‘People have looked to Florida for leadership’
He also said, “Now over the last few years since I’ve been Governor, people have looked to Florida for leadership in a variety of different ways.”
He even suggested that Florida was the “Utah of the Southeast,” a claim he repeated during a visit to Iowa, where he said, “Iowa, they’re really the Florida of the Midwest with all the conservative stuff they’re doing.”
However, DeSantis has also faced criticism for his controversial stance on the teaching of slavery in Florida schools, which he defended during a Utah press conference where some legislators endorsed him. He said, “They’re probably going to show that some of the folks that eventually parlayed, you know, being a blacksmith into doing things later in life.”
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DeSantis has also clashed with Utah’s other Senator, Mitt Romney, who has been a vocal critic of Trump and his allies. Last year, DeSantis attacked Romney for favouring Haley over him in the 2024 race.
With Lee’s endorsement, Trump has gained another advantage over DeSantis, who will have to work harder to win over the voters who still support the former President.
