Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) predicted that if the Republican Party concentrates solely on former President Trump, who remains the clear front-runner in the GOP primary election, there will be a “really nasty” election this year.
Margaret Brennan of CBS asked DeSantis on “Face the Nation” on Sunday whether he is concerned that the losing side in this year’s election may resort to violence.
DeSantis expressed his optimism that this would not occur and further stated that he believes the Republican Party “has an excellent chance” of winning the election.
He recommended that Republicans reframe the debate around the challenges confronting the nation and the shortcomings of the Biden administration in securing the election.
However, he cautioned that fixating on Trump may detrimentally affect the Republicans’ prospects of triumph in 2024.
“I think if we’re relitigating the past elections, if it’s about, you know, Donald Trump, or his legal issues, or criminal trials or all that stuff, you know, I think it’s going to be a really nasty election. I don’t think that puts Republicans in a good position to win,” DeSantis remarked on “Face the Nation.”
“So we need to have an election on the issues. You know, we need a candidate that can win a clear-cut victory, and we need to start looking forward as a country,” he continued.
As they approach next week’s Iowa caucuses, DeSantis and other Republican presidential candidates continue to lag significantly behind the former president in the polls.
[READ MORE: DeSantis Declares He Won’t Pardon Hunter Biden if Elected President]
