Last Updated on March 9, 2023
Ken Cuccinelli, a ring leader of 2016’s Never Trump movement, is launching a pro-Ron DeSantis PAC ahead of the 2024 Presidential Election, becoming just the latest from the Never Trump movement of old to hop aboard the DeSantis bandwagon.
Former Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli announced the launching of his Never Back Down PAC to support Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in the 2024 GOP Presidential Primary against 45th President Donald J. Trump. Cuccinelli was a ringleader of 2016’s Never Trump movement and was among those Cruz supporters who made last-ditch efforts on the Republican convention floor to block the will of the voters and Trump’s official nomination for President.
Cuccinelli helped lead those efforts on behalf of the Ted Cruz campaign and Team Trump described his tactics as “Gestapo” like.
Despite his staunch opposition to Trump’s nomination for President, Cuccinelli went on to work in the Trump Administration, along with many other Never Trumpers whose objections to Trump’s candidacy seemed to evaporate when financial opportunities were presented to them.
“Today I’m launching Never Back Down PAC to encourage @GovRonDesantis to run for President in 2024,” Cuccinelli wrote in a tweet, including a video announcement of the new DeSantis PAC.
“The energy is real,” Cuccinelli’s tweet went on to say. “Grassroots conservatives see that Governor DeSantis is a proven leader who can win in 2024.”
Today I’m launching Never Back Down PAC @Nvrbackdown24 to encourage @GovRonDeSantis to run for President in 2024
The energy is real. Grassroots conservatives see that Governor DeSantis is a proven leader who can win in 2024. #NeverBackDownhttps://t.co/1VKNweKgq5 pic.twitter.com/OaKq1XJrKr
— Ken Cuccinelli (@KenCuccinelli) March 9, 2023
Ron DeSantis: Florida’s Social Justice Enforcer
Despite the claim from Ken Cuccinelli and other DeSantis supporters that the Florida Governor supported by Jeb Bush can defeat both President Trump and Joe Biden, early polls of GOP voters tell a far different story.
At the recent CPAC gathering, President Trump’s speech, which lasted two hours, was one of the only occasions that actually drew a crowd, and he blew out both DeSantis and Nikki Haley (who didn’t even come in third place) in the CPAC straw poll.
In a recent Twitter poll conducted by DeSantis acolyte Bill Mitchell, President Trump blew the Florida Governor out of the water by over 40 points, prompting the poll to vanish from Mitchell’s page.
Ratio’d: Pro-DeSantis Twitter Poll Backfires as President Trump Blows Him Out by +40 Points
The numbers seen in Mitchell’s poll and at CPAC resemble those gathered by more scientific methods, as polling agencies begin their 2024 surveys of GOP voters.
According to a recent Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll, President Trump is leading Ron DeSantis among likely 2024 GOP Primary voters by a whopping 23-point margin. In that poll as well, Nikki Haley failed to finish in the top 3, losing to Mike Pence by 1%, the former Vice President who a 7% sliver of GOP voters say they want to lead the nation.
Related: Desantis’ Top Donor Admits Accessing Chinese Markets Is Top Focus