Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, after his second-place finish in Monday's Iowa caucuses, is spending "plenty of time" in New Hampshire before Tuesday's GOP primaries, state Sen. Regina Birdsell, speaking on behalf of his campaign, told Newsmax Saturday, while pointing out that he was the only candidate to agree to a pre-primary debate.
"He in no way is writing off the state of New Hampshire," the Republican lawmaker told Newsmax's "Saturday Agenda." "He understands how important New Hampshire is. And frankly, my concern is he was the only one that was going to agree to a debate."
"The state fights every term to make sure it keeps its first-in-the-nation primary status, and former President Donald Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley disappointed many people when they would not debate," Birdsell added.
"I talked to some new voters in this state that were really anxious and really excited about going to the debate, and then they were extremely disappointed," she said. "I think it's a lost opportunity for them to try and reach new voters. Gov. DeSantis understands how important it is, and he respects the first in the nation."
Meanwhile, New Hampshire has many libertarians in the state, as well as a lot of transplants coming to live there, said Birdsell.
"Some of the most important things that are that are important to them are [DeSantis'] stance on school choice or his stance on parental rights. And I do believe that that is going to be a winning message, no matter what," she said. "It's a problem in our state. It's a problem in almost every state ... I do believe that that is a winning message for the libertarians and Republicans."
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Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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