Ron DeSantis suspends 2024 presidential campaign; throws support to Trump

WASHINGTON - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has announced that he is suspending his campaign to become the Republican nominee in the 2024 presidential election and is now endorsing former President Donald Trump.

DeSantis announced the news in a social media post on X, formerly Twitter. The governor used a quote from Winston Churchill in the post, saying "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts."

The news comes ahead of New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary Tuesday.

RELATED: Ron DeSantis moves campaign away from New Hampshire ahead of state's primary

DeSantis' struggling campaign was averaging around 11% of the vote among GOP candidates, just slightly behind former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s 12%, according to the latest numbers from polling site FiveThirtyEight. 

Former President Donald Trump remains the clear front-runner in the race, still bringing in about 66% of the vote in a national poll. He won Monday’s Iowa caucuses 

"It’s clear to me that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance," DeSantis said in the video. 

"Trump is superior to the current incumbent Joe Biden. That is clear," DeSantis continued. "I signed a pledge to support the Republican nominee and I will honor that pledge." 

DeSantis announced his candidacy in May 2023. The 45-year-old Republican has served as governor of Florida since his win in 2018. He won his bid for a second term in 2022.

The ambitious big-state governor gained national attention for his hardline stances on key issues such as abortion, gender-affirming care for minors and the teaching of race and gender issues in schools.