(NewsNation) — Every Republican presidential candidate is currently asking themselves the same question: How do you make the case against Donald Trump without turning away his supporters?
It’s a delicate tightrope walk the former president’s rivals have struggled to navigate.
“If you attack Trump aggressively, you alienate a large number of Republican voters, and if you don’t attack him aggressively — or if you don’t mention him — then why would Republican voters choose you rather than him?” said Niall Stanage, White House columnist at The Hill. “That fundamental dilemma is not one that any candidate has really solved.”
Trump’s main challengers, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, have tried to strike a balance, highlighting the former president’s wins while emphasizing the need to move on.
“I agree with a lot of [Trump’s] policies, but the truth is, rightly or wrongly, chaos follows him,” Haley said at a campaign event Monday. “We have too much division in this country and too many threats around the world to be sitting in chaos once again.”
The two other major candidates, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, are on opposite ends of the Trump question — with Ramaswamy defending the former president and Christie lambasting him.
Here’s how each candidate has taken on Trump on the campaign trail so far.
DeSantis: Trump, without the chaos
Key quote: “[Trump] said Republicans were going to get tired of winning. Well we saw last night, I’m sick of Republicans losing. In Florida, I showed how it’s done,” DeSantis said at a recent debate.
The upside
The Florida governor has been careful not to estrange Trump’s base and polling suggests he’s been successful at that. Nearly 75% of those who voted for Trump in 2020 have a favorable view of DeSantis — the highest percentage of any candidate other than Trump, according to a recent Economist/YouGov poll.
DeSantis has tried to position himself as a calculated, level-headed Trump alternative — someone more interested in governing than photo-ops with foreign leaders. That approach has earned him several high-profile endorsements, particularly in Iowa.
The downside
DeSantis hasn’t turned away Trump’s supporters, but he’s struggled to articulate why they should choose him over the former president.
During the first debate, DeSantis appeared reluctant to raise his hand after the candidates were asked whether they would back Trump as the party’s nominee if he were convicted.
But Stanage thinks the Florida governor’s campaign woes may have less to do with outright gaffes and more to do with a flawed underlying premise — which is that DeSantis became popular despite Trump, not because of him.
“Once DeSantis became someone who was trying to defeat Trump, his share of the Republican vote seemed to fall over a long period of time by a quite significant margin,” said Stanage.
George Will, NewsNation’s senior political contributor, said DeSantis’ strategy missed a key element of Trump’s appeal.
“His approach misunderstood one important fact, which is that it’s the crazy that a lot of Trump people like: the norm-breaking, the raucous rallies, the entertainment value,” said Will.
Is it working?
After polling within five points of the former president last spring, DeSantis’ momentum has faded and currently finds himself 48 points behind. Nationally, he’s still in second place, but Haley has closed the gap in recent weeks.
Haley: More electable than Trump
Key quote: “We have to face the fact that Trump is the most disliked politician in America. We can’t win a general election that way,” Haley said at the first debate.
The upside
Haley’s campaign message appears to be resonating with several key voting blocs. In a head-to-head matchup against Biden, the former South Carolina governor outperforms both Trump and DeSantis, particularly among suburban women, white college graduates, moderates and independents, according to a recent Fox News poll.
The former U.N. Ambassador under Trump has said she believes Trump “was the right president at the right time” while also underscoring the need for a new generation.
“What Nikki Haley is trying to do is thread the needle: to respect Trump voters who are Trump voters, in many cases, because they feel disrespected. They feel that there’s an improper and inequitable distribution of status in the United States,” said Will.
The downside
Haley’s performance in the general election won’t matter if she can’t get there. For now, she still trails both Trump and DeSantis among GOP voters, even with Republican women and white college graduates, the Fox News survey showed.
But she has another problem: Recent polls show Trump leading Biden. Haley’s electability argument becomes weaker if Republicans are confident they can win without her.
Is it working?
While she still trails Trump by more than 50 points, Haley is rising in the polls and gaining on DeSantis in second place. She’ll look to build on a string of strong debate performances during the fourth Republican primary debate on Dec. 6.
Ramaswamy: Trumpism for the future
Key quote: “I have respected Donald Trump more than anybody else in this race because he was the best president of the 21st century,” Ramaswamy said at a Florida GOP event earlier this month. “I said that before, and I will say it again because it’s the right thing to do. We will honor that legacy.”
The upside
Ramaswamy is well-liked by the former president’s fervent supporters. Among those who voted for Trump in 2020, 55% have a favorable view of Ramaswamy while just 22% have an unfavorable view, according to the Economist/YouGov poll.
The biotech entrepreneur and youngest candidate in the field is outperforming his overall position among younger Republicans. He’s tied with DeSantis among GOP primary voters under 45 and is in front of Haley with that group, the Fox News poll found.
The downside
Those who are looking for a Trump-like candidate already have one: Trump.
“He’s like New Coke — who needs it?” Will said. “People who liked the old Coke liked it, and the people that didn’t like the old Coke didn’t want another version of it.”
So far, the political outsider has struggled to gain traction in Iowa and New Hampshire, despite spending more money than any other GOP candidate besides Trump.
Is it working?
Ramaswamy gained momentum after the first debate and looked poised to challenge DeSantis for second place as recently as September, but since then, polling shows his campaign has faltered. He’s now polling around 5%, less than half of where he was just a few months ago, according to FiveThirtyEight.
Christie: The anti-Trump critic
Key quote: “A lonely, self-consumed, self-serving mirror hog is not a leader,” Christie said of Trump during his campaign announcement in June.
The upside
For those looking to move on from Trumpism, the former New Jersey governor is the only candidate who has unapologetically filled that lane. Christie has called Trump a “con artist” who’s “grifting” off the supporters of his campaign. He’s also predicted that the former president will be a convicted felon by next spring.
The hardline anti-Trump message has had a moderate effect in New Hampshire, where Christie is currently polling third.
The downside
Christie is the only GOP candidate who’s viewed more favorably by Democrats than members of his own party. Just 25% of Republicans have a favorable view of the former New Jersey Governor, while 60% see him unfavorably, the Economist/YouGov poll found.
“He has a lot of political skills, it’s just that he’s selling something that the Republican elector, at this point, isn’t all that interested in buying,” said Stanage.
Is it working?
Christie’s polling in fifth place at 2%. It’s an indication staunch “Never Trump” Republicans reflect a relatively small portion of the GOP today.