According to a report by Axios on Saturday, influential Republican funders are engaging in discreet efforts to persuade prominent Republican governors, namely Glenn Youngkin of Virginia and Brian Kemp of Georgia, to consider contesting former President Donald Trump in the upcoming 2024 presidential election.
According to Axios, Republican funders are exploring alternate candidates to support in the upcoming election as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis faces challenges in gaining popularity against the previous president. Despite their prior statements ruling out a potential campaign for the 2024 election, Youngkin and Kemp are reportedly considering the possibility as influential funders express interest, according to multiple sources.
“People are desperate. They are concerned with what could happen if Trump wins the primaries and they want a viable alternative,” a GOP insider told Axios.
According to individuals who communicated with Axios, it has been suggested that Ronald Lauder, a billionaire, is among the GOP contributors who may offer their support to Youngkin in the event that he decides to pursue a presidential campaign. Billionaire Thomas Peterffy, who had earlier expressed his endorsement for DeSantis in the presidential race, recently made a substantial contribution of $2 million to Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia PAC.
Axios reported that Rupert Murdoch, the individual in charge of Fox News and the New York Post, is reportedly expressing a discreet desire for Youngkin to take on Trump who is facing multiple indictments brought by Democrats.
Dave Rexrode, Chairman of the Spirit of Virginia PAC, said that “Virginia’s getting attention because Governor Youngkin’s common-sense conservative leadership is working. There’s more to do, so the governor’s not taking his eye off Virginia; these (legislative) races are too important.”
Our promised commonsense approach is delivering for parents, students, and law enforcement!
Together, we’ve reawakened the Spirit of Virginia! pic.twitter.com/F68xzh4Ham
— Glenn Youngkin (@GlennYoungkin) August 7, 2023
Youngkin asserts his exclusive dedication to Virginia when questioned about a potential bid for the 2024 presidential election. On May 1, he explicitly said that he has no intentions of running for the presidency during the current year. According to a report by Axios in late May, Youngkin was rumored to be reconsidering his previous decision to rule out a 2024 run.
One source has stated that John Bolton, the former National Security Adviser of the Trump administration, reportedly advised Kemp in a private conversation earlier in August to run against Trump, whom he has frequently criticized.
Kemp has explicitly stated his decision to abstain from participating in the presidential race of 2024. Instead, he has actively fueled speculation regarding his potential bid to challenge Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff in 2026, subsequent to the conclusion of Kemp’s second term as governor.
According to the RealClearPolitics (RCP) average, which aggregates polls, from July 31 to August 17, the 2024 national Republican primary shows that Trump is leading DeSantis by a significant margin of over 40 points. Following Trump, conservative businessman Vivek Ramaswamy holds 7.2% of the support, while former VP Mike Pence and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley have 5.2% and 3.4% respectively. The results of the poll indicated that both Chris Christie, the former Governor of New Jersey, and Tim Scott, the Senator from South Carolina, garnered a support level of 2.7%. Conversely, all other Republican candidates surveyed received less than 1% support.
A significant advancement has occurred in the legal proceedings of the Georgia election case involving former President Trump. A federal judge has just set a date for a hearing to address the appeal made by former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, who seeks to have his case transferred from Fulton County to a federal court.
The presiding judge, Steve C. Jones, has officially declared that the scheduled hearing is set to occur on the 28th of August. Interestingly, it is noteworthy that on this particular day, legal representatives of former President Donald Trump are scheduled to make an appearance in a distinct court proceeding in Washington, D.C.
“The Court concludes the face of the Notice of Removal… and attached Indictment… do not clearly indicate that summary remand of this matter is required. No opinion about whether the removal will be permitted or on a federal immunity defense is being made at this time,” Jones announced.
The notice of removal and Wednesday’s order must be provided to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis by Meadows no later than August 23rd.
Meadows recently tried to transfer his indictment to a federal court. The legal representatives argue that due to the occurrence of the events in issue during his period as chief of staff, he possesses the right to request the relocation of his portion of the indictment from the Fulton County Superior Court.
According to the investigation by ABC News, it is anticipated that Trump would undertake the same endeavor. According to Raw Story, there is a perceived benefit for Donald Trump and his supporters in relocating the venue from Fulton County, which is predominantly Democratic, to the more conservative region in the northern section of Georgia that shares a border with Alabama.
Trump has made a commitment to provide a study that he claims would be “irrefutable” about his allegations of electoral misconduct in Georgia. Initially the findings were going to be released during a press conference but his legal team has decided to introduce them in court.
The post Two Popular GOP Governors May Soon Enter Race To Challenge Trump appeared first on The Republic Brief.
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