EXCLUSIVE — The youth organization supporting Gov. Ron DeSantis's (R-FL) presidential bid has established itself on 100 college campuses.
Pro-DeSantis PAC Never Back Down will announce on Thursday that Students for DeSantis is present in 37 different states in the form of 100 different chapters.
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“There is incredible energy from young voters and college students for Ron DeSantis, enabling us to rapidly set up new chapters, recruit more and more volunteers, and really hit the ground running in our efforts to help elect Gov. DeSantis as our next President,” said Marcel Teloma, the director of Students for DeSantis.
"With 100 chapters across 37 states and counting, we are thrilled to head into the fall semester with a stronger presence than any other candidate-affiliated group in the GOP primary. Working alongside established conservative groups on campuses, like College Republicans, we’ll continue to grow our recruitment and mobilization in support of Gov. DeSantis," he added.
Nine of the 100 chapters are located in one of the four key early primary and caucus states. There are four chapters in South Carolina, located at Clemson University, the College of Charleston, Furman University, and the University of South Carolina. Iowa is home to three chapters at Drake University, the University of Iowa, and the University of Northern Iowa. There is one chapter each in New Hampshire at Saint Anselm College and Nevada at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas.
Between the chapters, Students for DeSantis operates 50 unique social media accounts on platforms including Instagram and Twitter. Each chapter has a chairman who is charged with leading efforts for recruitment, outreach, and mobilization ahead of the busy fall campaign season.
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DeSantis is polling in second place nationally with the support of 20% of potential Republican primary voters, per Morning Consult. Trump leads each candidate in the field by double digits, boasting 55% support.
In a new poll of GOP primary voters in New Hampshire, Trump's lead over DeSantis narrowed to just 14 points as the former president lost five percentage points.