(NewsNation) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is taking aim at former President Donald Trump, criticizing how Trump’s administration responded to the pandemic.

DeSantis said at a news conference Thursday that Florida has been “attacked relentlessly” over its policies, despite rules in other parts of the country he said “did not work, and were destructive.”

The critique comes as a new Quinnipiac University poll shows Trump leading in a hypothetical matchup between the two in the 2024 Republican presidential primary.

Allies of Trump have filed a 15-page complaint with the Florida Commission on Ethics, accusing DeSantis of running a shadow campaign. The complaint alleges the governor is “already a de facto candidate for president.”

Trump this week also intensified his attacks on DeSantis.

“But you have to remember, Ron was a disciple of Paul Ryan, who is a RINO loser,” he said. “Ron reminds me a lot of Mitt Romney, so I don’t think you’re going to be doing so well here.”

Niall Stanage, associate editor for NewsNation partner The Hill, said the attacks are “about eroding DeSantis’ standing with those who are in the middle ground within a Republican primary.”

But are these attacks really affecting voters?

In Miami’s predominantly Republican Little Havana neighborhood, Jose Bernardez said, “Trump’s time is over.”

“DeSantis, I think, is the better man.”

To Alfredo Bared, Trump is just being Trump.

“We’ve learned that from the four years that he ran and before that,” Bared said.