Everybody Hates Ron

Likeability: Either you're born with it, or you're the governor of Florida.

Flickr // (CC) Gage Skidmore

I’ve already planted my flag and stated with declarative authority that Donald Trump is absolutely going to be the 2024 Republican presidential nominee. This is unquestionably true, and if you can’t see this obvious fact staring you directly in the face then perhaps it’s time you relinquish power of attorney to a trusted friend or family member whose brain is in better working condition than yours. What is also true is that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is never, ever going to be the 2024 Republican presidential nominee. These two truisms may seem like the same thing, but they are, in fact, very different.

For Trump to win the nomination next summer, all he has to do is be himself as much and as loudly as possible. The party loves that shit. He can kick back and coast on a stream of vague platitudes and unsubtle racism all the way through the Republican National Convention without breaking a sweat. DeSantis, on the other hand, will never be the nominee not because his politics are all that different from Trump, but because of the simple fact that he sucks. He sucks at being a candidate for office, and more importantly, he sucks at being a person. Frankly, I’m surprised it took this long for people to notice. But now, thanks to some new polling, we have real evidence and hard data about just how much they’re noticing.

Let’s look at the numbers.