DeSantis lays off 38 campaign staffers in the latest sign he's losing ground to Trump
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- Ron DeSantis' campaign has laid off roughly 1/3 of its staffers in recent weeks.
- DeSantis' campaign confirmed Politico's reporting that the Florida governor is organizing a massive reset.
- The layoffs come as DeSantis has struggled to pierce Trump's commanding national lead.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' presidential campaign has reportedly laid off nearly 1/3 of its staff over recent weeks, signaling a major course correction as former President Donald Trump's best-positioned primary foe struggled to crack Trump's commanding national lead.
"Following a top-to-bottom review of our organization, we have taken additional, aggressive steps to streamline operations and put Ron DeSantis in the strongest position to win this primary and defeat Joe Biden," Campaign Manager Generra Peck said in a statement released by DeSantis' campaign.
Politico reported on Tuesday that DeSantis' campaign has laid off a total of 38 aides and advisors as it seeks to achieve a reset of its efforts. According to the report, the number includes roughly 10 previously reported event planning positions.
It's unclear how DeSantis will change his approach going forward. One apparent move is to become more reliant on Never Back Down, his allied super PAC. Never Back Down is organizing a bus tour across Iowa for DeSantis this week. While super PACs cannot directly coordinate with a campaign, they are allowed to host events. Effectively, this means a super PAC can do the bulk of the traditional activities for which a presidential campaign would be responsible.
DeSantis' initial fundraising report underlined why the Florida governor is a serious contender, showing how he outraised both Trump and Biden. But the report also showed that DeSantis was spending significant sums of money, including payroll for more than 90 staffers.
The Florida governor's decision to delay his formal announcement coincided with a months-long effort by Trump and his allies to hammer DeSantis. A glitchy campaign rollout and a series of other missteps have also plagued his campaign. According to FiveThirtyEight's weighted average, DeSantis started the year roughly six points behind Trump in national polling. He is now more than 33 points behind.