(NewsNation) — Another Florida representative has given their endorsement to former President Donald Trump over Gov. Ron DeSantis.
DeSantis has not formally launched his presidential campaign, but Trump now has the support of nearly half of Florida’s 20 House Republicans.
Just three House Republicans so far have endorsed the Florida governor’s not-yet official presidential run. No senators have yet issued their endorsement.
Prior to be governor, DeSantis served in the House on Capitol Hill. He worked alongside many of the members, and he still can’t sway them away from the grasp of former President Donald Trump.
One lawmaker that replaced DeSantis in Congress, Florida’s Sixth District Congressman Mike Waltz, officially endorsed Trump on Thursday. That brings the total to nine Florida Republicans in the House that have endorsed the former president over their home state’s governor.
DeSantis has not publicly declared he is running for president, but he has been barnstorming early primary states and stopped through Washington, D.C. this week to drum up support. Critics say that fell flat.
Things are looking not so bright in the sunshine state for DeSantis either. Republican lawmakers in the state House are stalling a slew of agenda items with just a handful of weeks left in the session.
Trump continues to lead in both Florida and national polling.
DeSantis was once considered one of Trump’s most formidable challengers, but he has plenty of time left until the 2024 election.
But it has left one Republican strategist asking: Who can take on Trump?
“The wind is not at Gov. DeSantis’ back. He’s come to Washington, D.C. He has started to have conversations with members of the House of Representatives and then they have come out and endorsed Donald Trump. I think that this gets to the bigger question of who can out-do Donald Trump in the message game,” Republican strategist Lisa Camooso Miller said.
Following that flow of Florida support in Congress, Trump is hosting a congressional dinner Thursday evening in Mar-a-Lago, a Trump campaign source says. He is also gearing up for his next big rally in New Hampshire in a week that will mark his first major rally since his historic indictment.
