Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) questioned Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R-FL) position in the 2024 Republican presidential race ahead of an expected campaign announcement this week.

One day after Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) announced his presidential bid in North Charleston, South Carolina, Gingrich said on Fox News that Scott and others are “partly a function of DeSantis having failed to fill the vacuum,” noting the large number of Republicans looking for a serious party alternative besides former President Donald Trump.

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Gingrich called Trump's high poll numbers, which have typically shown him leading widely over his opponents in the Republican primary, “astonishing.”

“DeSantis didn’t prove capable of reaching out to all the different elements of the party,” Gingrich said, adding his failure is a factor to why more people, like Scott, are entering the race.

“It’s terrific for the country to have Tim Scott, who is a deeply committed Christian, offering a vision of hope, of opportunity, of unifying us – I think he’s going to be one of the real stars of the next two years,” Gingrich said.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) released a campaign-style video on social media last week after making comments at an event in California hosted by the Milken Institute that he would not run for president “this year,” but aides have stated Youngkin has not entirely ruled out casting a bid.

“I think if Glenn Youngkin does a video thinking about the future of America as opposed to the future of Virginia – there’s more than a little bit of a hint there,” Gingrich said.

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Gingrich said the “real challenge” for Youngkin will be to win control of both chambers, keeping the House red and flipping the currently blue Senate.

Gingrich said if Youngkin can manage that, “he’s got a pretty good argument to run for president next year.”