Struggling DeSantis sets sights on South Carolina, bypassing New Hampshire

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is all but abandoning New Hampshire's Republican presidential primary next week and instead relocating staff and focusing on South Carolina, where he hopes to pressure rival Nikki Haley in her home state.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is all but abandoning New Hampshire's Republican presidential primary next week and instead relocating staff and focusing on South Carolina, where he hopes to pressure rival Nikki Haley in her home state. DeSantis spent a huge proportion of his time and resources in Iowa, but came in a distant second to former President Donald Trump in the first Republican presidential nominating contest. DeSantis faces exceptionally tough odds in New Hampshire, a state his campaign has given scant attention to date.

Only about 6% of New Hampshire residents plan to vote for DeSantis, according to polling averages, versus about 30% for Haley, a former South Carolina governor, and 43% for Trump. Some recent polls have shown Haley and Trump in a much closer battle. DeSantis' campaign is now planning to focus chiefly on balmier South Carolina, which holds its Republican primary on Feb. 24, CBS News first reported on Wednesday. DeSantis and Haley are battling to emerge as the top alternative to Trump.

"When Nikki Haley fails to win her home state, she'll be finished and this will be a two-person race," a senior DeSantis campaign official told Reuters on Wednesday, confirming the report. The official would not say whether DeSantis would return to New Hampshire, but he has scheduled South Carolina events over the weekend.

There is nothing to indicate, however, that DeSantis could eke out a strong win, or even a strong second-place finish, in the Southern state. Trump is ahead of both DeSantis and Haley by a wide margin in South Carolina, with polling averages showing him with nearly 55% support compared with Haley at almost 25% and DeSantis at 12%.

After his disappointing finish in Iowa on Monday night, DeSantis flew directly to South Carolina, rather than going straight to New Hampshire, as is tradition. "She was governor here for six years. Can you name major achievements under her tenure?" he said of Haley at a campaign stop in Greenville, South Carolina, on Tuesday. "I mean, tell me if there are, because she hasn't been able to do it."

The New York Times reported on Wednesday that Never Back Down, a pro-DeSantis fundraising super PAC that has played a major role in his campaign, had begun layoffs, although it was unclear how many people were affected. Never Back Down did not immediately respond to a request for comment.