DeSantis's 2024 rivals waiting for him to 'screw up or fade': GOP strategist

A Republican strategist is suggesting the lack of declared GOP presidential candidates likely has to do with one of the presumed front-runners. Florida Gov. Ron

DeSantis (R-FL) is viewed as the top alternative candidate to former President Donald Trump, and other potential candidates may be waiting for an opening, Scott Jennings told

Axios. SOROS-BACKED OPEN BORDERS GROUP SUING RON DESANTIS VIOLATES FEDERAL LAW "Everyone not named DeSantis is having a hard time figuring out their way around

him. So they are waiting for him to screw up or fade," Jennings said to the outlet. "So far, he's doing neither." DeSantis, a popular governor who recently won reelection

by nearly 20 percentage points, has fared well in head-to-head polling against Trump, but tends to fall behind him in a crowded field. A recent poll from Harvard-Harris

shows GOP and independent voters prefer DeSantis over Trump 52%-48% when it's only those two, but in a crowded primary, Trump holds the edge over DeSantis 45%-30%, per a recent

Politico poll. Trump announced his third consecutive White House bid in November 2022 but has failed to gain any traction in the primary field as many wait for DeSantis to

make a decision. The former president will be hosting an "intimate" campaign event later this month, the first such event of his 2024 campaign. Several potential GOP

presidential contenders have taken jabs at DeSantis in recent weeks, likely attempting to dethrone him as the top alternative to Trump. Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD) criticized

DeSantis's abortion record as governor and specifically the 15-week abortion ban he pushed.