Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) is struggling to win over a base of voters he will need if he has any hope of becoming president.
Florida's governor is greatly anticipated to announce a presidential run in the coming weeks, but he has found himself on the receiving end of attacks coming not only from his top opponent, Donald Trump, but from the former president's ardent base.
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Many of the attacks mounted against DeSantis are based on conspiracy theories and include nicknames that riff on his last name — a favorite tactic of Trump's as he has referred to his expected top challenger as "Ron DeSanctus," "Ron DeSanctimonious," and "Meatball Ron."
Here is a look at some of those nicknames and the attacks attached to them.
"DeSoros"
One of the leading conspiracy theories mounted against DeSantis is that he is affiliated with left-wing billionaire George Soros.
The allegation stems from remarks Soros made in February, when he remarked that DeSantis was the "likely" Republican candidate for president in 2024.
“DeSantis is shrewd, ruthless, and ambitious,” Soros said. “He is likely to be the Republican candidate.”
Several in the Trump base, including former gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake (R-AZ), shared links to stories that framed Soros's comments as an endorsement. Soros's remarks were a prediction rather than an endorsement.
The nickname "DeSoros" has been circulated throughout various social media websites, especially after Soros's remarks.
"DeSatan"
One of the most widely used nicknames for DeSantis by his detractors has been "DeSatan." The term has been recently applied by left-wing social media users who have discussed DeSantis's feud with Disney, but the nickname has also been used for DeSantis's handling of the coronavirus.
Many in the Trump base have criticized DeSantis for pushing the COVID-19 vaccine in early 2021. A post from a Trump supporter on Twitter accused DeSantis of using a 100-year-old as a "vaccine Guinea pig on live TV" and then added that the person who received the vaccine died months later.
Conspiracy theories surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine, along with the waning effectiveness of the vaccine, have made what was once one of the achievements of the Trump administration into something to be mocked. The criticism regarding advocacy and plans to get citizens vaccinated in 2021 has been one of the criticisms thrown at DeSantis despite his own skepticism over the vaccine.
"DePLANTis"
The most frequently used conspiracy theory against the Florida governor is that he is a plant of the "deep state" or the old GOP establishment. The juxtaposition is made by many Trump loyalists between "DePLANTis" and the "outsider" Trump.
Two of the biggest examples used on social media to peddle the conspiracy theory is an image of DeSantis at his gubernatorial inauguration in January with former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-FL) in the background. The insinuation is that DeSantis surrounds himself with old-school establishment Republicans such as Bush.
Bush was attending the ceremony in his capacity as a former governor, as is common at inaugural events. At Trump's 2017 presidential inauguration, former President George W. Bush and Barack Obama were among the attendees.
The other example used is a video in which DeSantis praises lawyer "Elizabeth Locke" as an "extraordinaire" at a panel discussing defamation in media. Locke had represented Dominion Voting Systems in a lawsuit, but she has also represented other clients, including former Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK), per the New York Times.
Many in Trump's base have used this video to connect DeSantis with Dominion Voting Systems, which has been the subject of the former president's unproven allegations regarding voter fraud in the 2020 election. One tweet with the video labeled DeSantis as "controlled opposition."
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Fox News recently paid Dominion $787 million in a defamation suit regarding the network's boosting messages about the voting system company's alleged meddling in the 2020 elections.
DeSantis has consistently polled in second place in the GOP field, behind Trump, and will likely need to turn some of Trump's base in order to win the GOP primary.