Why Ron DeSantis is vulnerable
Governor Ron DeSantis has been getting much attention lately. And many think he cannot be beaten come 2022. Part of the negative outlook may be because we did not win as many Senate seats as we thought we would. But there are reasons for that.
I wanted to write this article to show why we did not win certain elections in 2020 and why this makes zero difference in the DeSantis race.
Let’s start with Susan Collins. Senator Collins was always going to be tough to beat. She’s a bit iconic in Maine and has been in office for many years. We had an excellent candidate to run against her in Sara Gideon. Here are two things that may have lead to Collins winning big.
One are the words “from away.” What does that mean? Well, Maine voters are very insular and do not trust outsiders easily. Collins framed Gideon as an outsider and, in advertising, said she was from “away,” an expression often used to say she is not a local. And Mainers want locals.
Second, a third candidate in the race was a bit of a spoiler, and many votes went to her.
Moving on, we get to Senator Lindsey Graham. People, that was always a long shot. South Carolina is not a swing state. And no matter how unpopular Graham is, fellow South Carolinians were never going to abandon him. I do think we overspent in that race.
Kentucky was a no-brainer. No way McConnell wasn’t not getting re-elected short of a miracle.
Florida’s different. Florida is still a swing state. DeSantis is tied in hypothetical matchups with Nikki Fried. For all the talk about DeSantis being king, he is tied this far out with a hypothetical competitor. Plus, DeSantis is hated by many in his state. So, a DeSantis loss is a genuine possibility. Let’s do the work to make it happen.
