Gov. Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign is in worse shape financially than initially reported due to a mistake highlighted in a new report, which comes amid yet another shakeup within his campaign.
While the DeSantis campaign has faced criticisms over his lack of small-dollar donors, it now appears the campaign is not as financially secure as initially reported. Coming into July, the DeSantis campaign reported $9.2 million in available cash for primary purposes. However, according to a report from the New York Times, the DeSantis campaign received a letter from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) revealing that the campaign mistakenly marked $2.6 million in donations for the primary election. In reality, those funds can only be used for the general election. As a result, available cash for the primary actually amounted to around $6.6 million, although the Times noted that a “campaign aide said some money could be reallocated and still be used for the primary.”
“Even that figure is most likely rosier than reality, because several key vendors did not show up on the books at all,” according to the report.
This stunning reality comes as the DeSantis campaign shakes up its staffing yet again, scrambling to reassure donors that the campaign is moving in the right direction following weeks of stagnation in the state level and national polls, as former President Donald Trump continues to dominate the GOP field, routinely, by double digits. One recent New Hampshire survey, for instance, showed DeSantis falling to single digits in the Granite State.
In early July, a memo leaked out, revealing the DeSantis campaign’s strategy to reassure donors that it has a plan and is moving in the right direction, focusing on early states.
“From what we can tell, pro-DeSantis efforts are currently and will continue to run a robust effort in Iowa, South Carolina, and New Hampshire, that includes paid media and field,” the memo reads in part.
“While Super Tuesday is critically important, we will not dedicate resources to Super Tuesday that slow our momentum in New Hampshire. We expect to revisit this investment in the Fall,” it adds.
That same month, the DeSantis campaign laid off dozens of staffers, and it was revealed this week that DeSantis replaced his campaign manager, moving Generra Peck to the role of chief strategist on the campaign. James Uthmeier, who served as his office’s chief of staff, is the new campaign manager.
Jack Posobiec, senior editor of Human Events, is among those who have pointed to the DeSantis campaign’s financial situation — namely, his lack of small dollar donors.
“We’ve all seen the headlines over the past couple of weeks” of DeSantis down in the polls, cutting staff, and a “bad burn rate” in terms of donations, Posobiec told Breitbart News during a July interview at the Turning Point Action Conference.
“People point to the super PAC and say, ‘Oh, the super PAC’s got all this money.’ Ok, but his campaign burn rate is bad. And that’s bad because of the lack of small dollar donors,” he said, adding that 15 percent of the campaign’s donations are small dollar, “which means 85 [percent] are these high dollar donors, which means you haven’t built out the infrastructure for that small dollar base.”
WATCH — Jack Posobiec Talks RON vs. THE DON: Is DeSantis Campaign Blowing It?
Donald Trump Jr. made the same point, noting DeSantis’s lack of small dollar donors and asserting that the Never Trump billionaire donor movement is behind the Florida governor’s presidential bid.
“I think it’s pretty clear, as evidenced by the small-dollar donors — 15 percent of the entire take, right? So it’s all the billionaires, that’s who wants that because they want a president they can control,” he told Breitbart News in July.
WATCH — Donald Trump Jr.: Never Trump Billionaire Donor Movement Largely Behind DeSantis Bid
The news comes on the heels of Robert Bigelow, the biggest individual donor to DeSantis’s presidential campaign, withholding further support until the campaign shows improvement and attracts new donors.
“Not until I see that he’s able to generate more on his own. I’m already too big a percentage,” Bigelow told Reuters, adding that “a lot of his donors are still on the fence.”