New Hampshire is a Live Free or Die state for DeSantis and Haley, as Trump surges in polls

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis canceled his appointment to appear on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. He canceled his appearance on CNN. He has just one item on his campaign calendar Sunday — a 4:30 pm stop at a coffeeshop in New Hampshire, where the first presidential primary of the year takes place on Tuesday, Jan. 23. The rest of DeSantis’ online campaign calendar has been wiped clean.

Polling shows that New Hampshire is coming down to Donald Trump and Nikki Haley for the Republican voters. Trump is polling at over 55% and Haley is in the mid-30s, with DeSantis in single digits. New Hampshire may be where DeSantis’ campaign goes to die, and where Trump cinches the title of presumed nominee for Republicans.

DeSantis came in second in Iowa, but still lagged 30 points behind Trump, who took the victory by an historic margin of 51% in the caucuses last week. Vivek Ramaswamy dropped out and pledged his caucus delegates to Trump, giving him a running start in the nominating process with 23 delegates.

Meanwhile, Haley, whose campaign and allied political committees spent $37 million in Iowa alone, has spent nearly as much in New Hampshire. Three super PACs that back her — Americans for Prosperity, Independents Moving the Needle, and SFA Fund, spent at least $25 million in media ads targeting New Hampshire likely Republican voters. Haley’s campaign has spent at least $5 million. The final tally will show these amounts higher.

The state after New Hampshire’s primary is South Carolina on Feb. 24. That’s where DeSantis spent Saturday stumping for votes, almost an acknowledgment of his low probability for coming in second in New Hampshire.

“I’m asking for your support as we get into this primary next month,” DeSantis told supporters at a restaurant in the town of Florence, which is in the middle of the state. “I’ll be a candidate that will be able to bring our party together up and down the ballot, just like I did in Florida. I will always be a candidate that you can be proud of. As president, I will get the job done.”

New Hampshire has just 22 delegates — less than 1% for the GOP nomination. South Carolina, on the other hand, has 50 delegates who will attend the 2024 Republican National Convention. DeSantis currently has 9 delegates, while Haley has 8.

To win the Republican nomination, candidates must get support from a majority of national delegates, which is approximately 1,215.

Ramaswamy said on Sunday that DeSantis “would do the GOP & the country a great service if he drops out tonight & sends an unequivocal message to the neocons: America-First is the way. This movement can’t be about ego or ambition. He deserves immense credit if he does. This primary needs to end on Tuesday.”

According to FiveThirtyEight.com, which tracks opinion polls, Trump is polling nationally at over 66% with Republican primary voters, with Haley at 12% and DeSantis at 11%.