Comment A potential contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination had a triumphant night Tuesday, and it wasn’t Donald Trump. The former president spent the final days of the campaign threatening and even threatening Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis, whose apparent interest in running against Trump has troubled him, according to advisers who spoke on condition of anonymity to reflect private conversations. The Florida governor did not fire back, except to hold his own campaign event on Saturday, rivaling Trump’s rally in Miami and further angering the former president. Come election night, however, it was DeSantis who held the glitzy victory party after winning re-election by a 20-point landslide, nearly 15 points better than Trump’s 2020 margin in their shared state. At the party, DeSantis supporters chanted “Two more years!” — encouraging the governor to run for the presidency before completing his second term. Trump’s own watch party, by contrast, was cut short by a tropical storm headed for the resort town of Mar-a-Lago, which is in a mandatory evacuation zone Wednesday morning. Trump spoke briefly Tuesday night to thank reporters for coming, brag about his winning endorsement record and congratulate some Republican candidates who won or came out ahead. But not DeSantis. “Wouldn’t it be funny if we were better in the general election than the election [primary] nominations,” Trump mused, as if still processing the results himself. He spent Tuesday night among longtime advisers and donors who, like other Republicans, expected a better showing on Tuesday. After leaving the stage, Trump took to the social networking site Truth Social to gloat over the downfall of Republican Senate candidates Don Bolduc in New Hampshire and Joe O’Dea in Colorado, whose victories could have lead the party to a majority that remained uncertain on Tuesday. Night. Top 10 Republican Presidential Candidates for 2024, Ranked The full picture of Tuesday’s results has yet to be finalized, and Trump scored several victories against several of his favorite candidates in Senate races, including Ted Budd in North Carolina and JD Vance in Ohio. (Vance, in particular, thanked dozens of people in his victory speech, but not Trump.) Still, the results were shaping up to be a mixed bag for Republicans, not the boom Trump had hoped for before quickly announcing his own. 2024 nomination. “The quality of the candidates matters,” Erick Erickson, a longtime GOP commentator, said of what he described as a disappointing showing for Trump. “They were not good candidates. They had more faith in him than anything else. The GOP can win both [chambers] but this is not the night they have been waiting for.” Trump’s allies acknowledged the early returns fell short of high expectations — but remained bullish on the GOP’s chances of winning full control of Congress. “As President Trump looks to the future, he will continue to defend his America First agenda that won overwhelmingly at the polls,” said his spokesman Taylor Budowitz. He called Trump’s win-loss record for approvals “a truly unprecedented achievement and something only possible because of President Trump’s ability to pick and choose winners.” DeSantis’ allies trumpeted his resounding re-election Tuesday as a sign that the GOP’s national energy is behind him. The governor edged out Democrat Charlie Crist and appeared poised to win Miami-Dade County, which hasn’t been contested by a Republican since former Gov. Jeb Bush in 2002. But DeSantis wasn’t the only one among Trump’s potential challengers who seemed bold Tuesday night, rather than discouraged from clearing the field for Trump. Senator Tim Scott (RS.C.) used his victory speech to hint at his own possible ambitions, saying he wished his grandfather “had lived long enough to see maybe another colored man elected president of United States”. And Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngin appeared on Fox News, winking at his own ambitions. “It sounds like you’ve been thinking about it,” Fox anchor Brett Baier said of a run at the White House. Youngkin replied, “Well, I appreciate it. I’m always humble in this conversation.” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who won re-election after surviving a Trump-fueled primary challenge and running well ahead of Trump’s chosen Senate nominee Herschel Walker on Tuesday, took an unusual swipe at Trump in his victory speech. He hit back at “presidents, current and former” for criticizing his early move to lift pandemic restrictions. Midterm elections are inevitably a referendum on the party in power, but Trump made this year’s about him. Although he wasn’t on the ballot himself, “Trump’s ticket” was, as he called his list of candidates in key states. How these candidates fare in the vote count is sure to fuel rifts within the Republican Party over the electoral viability of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement after losses in 2018 and 2020. Their success would embolden hard-liners to push for a remaking of the party in Trump’s image, while the loss of winnable seats would fuel concerns that Trump’s hold on the party limits his chances with independents and swing voters who decide on close elections. “The Trump candidates have been a drag on the party and the messaging of all our candidates,” said Bill Palatucci, a Republican National Committeeman from New Jersey and a Trump critic who said Democrats wanted to send a message against Trump and of his supporters, even though he was not on the ballot. “We had to constantly distance ourselves from their support of the former president.” Trump had by far the most influence in this cycle’s GOP primaries, with about 82 percent of the candidates he supported (excluding incumbents) winning, according to a Washington Post analysis. In some cases, Trump attempted to engage with candidates already on track to win, such as Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano. But for others, like Mehmet Oz for the Senate primary clash in the same state, Trump’s support was clearly decisive. But on Tuesday night, Mastriano was projected to lose in dramatic fashion and Oz fell behind in a tight race. Trump sought to claim credit for the Republican gains, with his team pointing to his 30 rallies, 50 fundraisers, 60 teleconferences and robocalls and more than $16 million in super PAC ads for state offices in swing states . “Well, I think if they win, I should take all the credit,” he said in an interview published Tuesday on the NewsNation network. “If they lose, I shouldn’t be blamed at all.” Trump was determined to grab the spotlight Tuesday night, throwing a big party in a gilded ballroom at his club, inviting current and former advisers to watch him speak surrounded by flags. He planned to interview staff later this week and had planned his presidential announcement for next week, according to multiple advisers. Anticipating a Republican surge, Trump wanted to get to the point of declaring his candidacy for president before Election Day, according to people familiar with the discussions. But advisers banned him, arguing he could be drowned out by other news or blamed for mobilizing Democratic turnout. While advisers managed to push off an official announcement, Trump became increasingly clear about his intentions, telling supporters they would be “so happy” “very soon” and finally, at a Monday rally, promising a “very special announcement” for next Tuesday, November 15. Part of his urgency, advisers said, came from his desire to pressure other Republicans to rally behind him and clear the field of potential challengers, especially DeSantis. Trump has fixated on DeSantis more than other potential 2024 opponents, watching his large crowds and frustrated by his positive coverage — while calling him ungrateful for supporting Trump in his 2018 campaign, allies say. He tried several aliases and attacks before landing on “Ron DeSanctimonious” last week. consultants said the reception was mixed and did not use it again this weekend. On Monday night, Trump attacked DeSandis while speaking to reporters on his plane and even threatened to release damaging information about him if he ran. “If he ran, I’ll tell you things about him that won’t be very flattering. I know more about him than anyone except his wife, who is actually running his campaign,” Trump told a small group of reporters, according to the Wall Street Journal. “I think if he runs, he could hurt himself pretty bad,” she said.
