Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) on Monday said that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was the leader of the Republican party. She also suggested for support to be shifted from former President Trump to DeSantis, as the 2022 midterm elections showed that the GOP was shifting away from Trump.
When asked by a Politico reporter about whether she would endorse Trump, Lummis said that the right question to ask was not whether she would endorse him, but rather who the current leader of the Republican party was. To this, she said the answer was clearly Ron DeSantis. She also added that this was the case regardless of what Ron DeSantis wanted.
Lummis’ statement came at the same time as a new poll by Club for Growth Action. The poll showed that DeSantis was currently leading over Trump in two key states, Iowa and New Hampshire. These two are traditionally the first states in the presidential primary to host contests.
In the poll, DeSantis appeared to have 48 percent of voters’ support, while Trump had 37 percent. Around 16 percent were still undecided in Iowa. In August a similar poll had shown that DeSantis had 27 percent while Trump at the time had 52 percent support from Iowa’s Republican voters.
The poll in New Hampshire showed that DeSantis was leading with 52 percent, while Trump only had 37 percent. Around 11 percent of voters were still undecided. The August poll had shown the two men tied at 45 percent.
In Florida, DeSantis is also leading with 56 percent, while Trump only has around 30 percent of voters’ support. Approximately 14 percent have remained undecided.