Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) offered a blunt assessment of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) during their Thursday night debate, telling the presidential hopeful he won't win the White House.

"There are profound differences tonight, and I look forward to engaging them. But there's one thing in closing, that we have in common, is neither of us will be the nominee for our party in 2024," Newsom concluded in his opening remarks.

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The comments came during the debate hosted by Fox News host Sean Hannity in Alpharetta, Georgia.

DeSantis is running in the GOP primary against former President Donald Trump, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy, and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. Newsom has denied allegations that he is running a shadow campaign in 2024 should President Joe Biden suffer a health emergency making him unable to continue his reelection campaign.

During the debate, DeSantis called out Newsom's presidential ambitions in a heated exchange. "I thought this guy was running for president of the United States," Newsom taunted DeSantis.

"You are too. You just won't admit it," DeSantis countered.

The Florida governor sought to highlight his record against Newsom's leadership in California during his opening statements.

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"In Florida, we showed the conservative principles work. This country must choose freedom over failure," DeSantis said.

Newsom sought to link DeSantis to Trump's politics of grievance. "You and President Trump are really trying to light democracy on fire," the California governor said to DeSantis.