The main super PAC supporting former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley's run for president panned Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) as irrelevant after a Wednesday debate performance it called "forgettable."
Mark Harris, the lead strategist for SFA Fund Inc., released a memo on Friday hailing Haley's breakout moments at the first presidential debate of the Republican primary, held on Wednesday in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. But it spent considerable space critiquing DeSantis, who had long been considered former President Donald Trump's chief rival before a decline in the polls.
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"While they would have you think differently, the fact remains that Ron DeSantis had the most to lose and did not have the night he needed," Harris wrote. "With a campaign that's been hemorrhaging support, dropping in the polls and is on its seventh reboot since his June kick-off, DeSantis needed to do more than just exist."
"In fact, he wasn't memorable, and his remarks were forgettable," he added.
DeSantis spoke for a combined 10 minutes throughout the two-hour debate, the fourth-highest of any candidate, but his subdued performance, and the decision of his rivals to ignore him, led pundits to describe him as a "loser" of the event.
The DeSantis campaign has disputed this characterization, citing a snap poll by the Washington Post, FiveThirtyEight, and Ipsos showing 29% of debate-watchers thought he won, followed closely by 26% for entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. Haley registered at third, with 15%.
Yet Harris argued Haley's stock is rising as DeSantis's falls, pointing to a Democratic-aligned poll of Wisconsin independent voters, 45% of whom said she won the debate, compared to 24% for DeSantis.
In particular, her exchanges with Ramaswamy on foreign policy and her willingness to criticize Trump directly — she called him the "most disliked politician in America" — earned her media attention.
"There's a good rule of thumb in debates: If you're not being heard and no one is focused on you, it just means you aren't relevant anymore," Harris said in a dig at DeSantis.
Each candidate has sought to project momentum following the debate. The Haley campaign called the 24 hours that followed "the best fundraising day of the campaign," while DeSantis's camp touted a $1 million haul.
“Ron DeSantis showed Wednesday night that he is a proven leader who will deliver results as president, and we are thrilled with the flood of support we have received since his debate victory," campaign manager James Uthmeier said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. "We look forward to building on this momentum in the weeks and months ahead as the Governor continues to outwork everyone in this race as he lays out his vision to reverse our nation’s decline and revive the American Dream.”
Haley has ground to make up if she wants to remain competitive in the race. She registered at 6% support in the latest poll of Iowa Republican voters, behind Trump, DeSantis, and her home state colleague Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC). She is tied for sixth place in the latest poll out of New Hampshire.
Meanwhile, DeSantis, despite posting strong fundraising numbers, has troubles of his own. He has undergone multiple campaign shake-ups as donors complain about a slide in the polls. He trails Trump, who skipped Wednesday's debate, nationally by 41 points in the RealClearPolitics average.
Eight candidates ultimately attended the debate, several of whom had breakout moments of their own, among them former Vice President Mike Pence and ex-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
Scott, who is competing with Haley for support in South Carolina, offered a more restrained debate performance.
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Without naming names, Harris encouraged those candidates who failed to stand out to consider dropping out of the race.
"Those who got lost in the coverage should take a second look at whether it's really in the best interest of our country and shared goal to defeat Donald Trump and Joe Biden that they continue on with their campaigns," he said.