His speech on Friday capture the current post-policy phase of Republicanism. “We can sit around and have academic debates about conservative policy, we can do that,” he said. “But the question is, when the Klieg lights get hot, when the left comes after you: Will you stay strong, or will you fold?”
Mr. DeSantis also vowed never to return to “the failed Republican establishment of yesteryear.” Mr. DeSantis, like other prospective presidential candidates, has not indicated if he indeed plans to run for the Republican nomination for the White House in 2024.
He earned 43 percent in the straw poll without Mr. Trump, with Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota finishing second, with 11 percent.
The CPAC straw polls have not proved particularly predictive of future presidential nominees. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky won three in a row in the run-up to the 2016 primary, which he quit after a poor showing in one contest — the Iowa caucuses. Senator Mitt Romney of Utah won four CPAC straw polls (in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2012) but now is a figure whose name drew boos and derision as one of Mr. Trump’s fiercest Republican critics.
Still, the early 2021 success for Mr. DeSantis gives him a larger platform and bragging rights for a party that remains very much in search of any identity beyond fealty to Mr. Trump.
The straw poll result was likely discouraging for former Vice President Mike Pence, who did not attend the conference. He had served as Mr. Trump’s loyal No. 2 for four years, but his unwillingness to try to challenge or overturn the results of the 2020 election earned him Mr. Trump’s anger and, in turn, that of many in the Republican base. Mr. Pence earned one percent of the CPAC vote.
Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/28/us/politics/cpac-straw-poll-2024-presidential-race.html
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