'We gotta win': More donors flee DeSantis over electability concerns

One of Ron DeSantis' signature policies as Florida governor is coming back to haunt with with Republican donors.

GOP megadonors were eager to lavish DeSantis with campaign cash once he announced his presidential primary challenge to Donald Trump, but many of those big donors are backing away due to the six-week abortion ban he signed a month before entering the 2024 race, reported Politico.

“If it becomes apparent that Ron has boxed himself into a corner … in Florida, and is not going to win because of the consequences, I may not support him. It’s that simple,” said Walter Buckley, a retired venture capitalist who was DeSantis’ tenth-biggest donor. “That at this point is really my consternation because I like DeSantis. I think he’s talented, hardworking as hell and smart. But I cannot understand why he took such a hard position in Florida. I think it’s a mistake.”

Only 16 of the 50 donors who contributed at east $160,000 to his 2022 gubernatorial re-election campaign gave money to the super PAC Never Back Down through the end of June, and eight other major donors gave to his presidential campaign instead.

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“I think he’s done a terrific job as governor of Florida, and I’ve been, as I think you know, a big supporter of him in that role,” said Bruce Rauner, a former Illinois governor who gave DeSantis nearly $1 million during last year's cycle but not since. “I think Nikki Haley probably has the best chance to win the general election ... I think everyone is trying to sort things out. We gotta win, we gotta win the general.”

The stringent abortion ban has alienated big donors who tend to be more moderate on social issues, but his supporters insist that should help burnish his conservative bona fides.

“Gov. DeSantis wouldn’t let $1 or even $1 billion drive him in a political direction that he doesn’t believe in,” said GOP fundraiser Roy Bailey, who is helping the governor. “No amount of political contributions could erode his core values.“