Stand for America, the super PAC backing former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley for the Republican presidential nomination, has shelled out more than $3.5 million targeting her 2024 rival Ron DeSantis over the past two months — while bypassing potential attacks on front-runner Donald Trump, federal receipts show.
The strategic spending is meant to set the record straight about “DeSantis’ lies” and bolster knowledge about Haley’s record, SFA spokesperson Brittany Yanick told The Post, without mentioning any strategy to counter Trump.
SFA has also spent $25,000 on advertising against President Biden and more than $28 million on pro-Haley initiatives.
“Ron DeSantis’ lies and desperate mudslinging aren’t working; it’s backfiring and costing him support,” said Yanick. “We won’t allow DeSantis to spread lies about Nikki’s record when it comes to China or terrorism in the Middle East. We’re focused on ensuring voters understand Nikki Haley’s record and DeSantis’ latest attempts to rewrite history amid his sinking ship of a campaign.”
SFA’s millions went toward ads and other expenditures targeting Iowa and New Hampshire, according to data reviewed by The Post, and comes as Haley and DeSantis compete for second place in both early states behind the 77-year-old Trump’s imposing lead.
Trump is coming in at an average of 61.6% support nationally compared to DeSantis’ 13.7% and Haley’s 9.8%, according to RealClearPolitics.
In Iowa and New Hampshire, the 45th president leads DeSantis, 45, and Haley, 51, by more than 30 points, per the same source.
Both campaigns initially targeted early states in an effort to show voters they were the best candidate to overtake Trump, but their focus has recently shifted to attacks on each other.
Never Back Down, the main super PAC backing DeSantis, has also focused on Haley — dropping a relatively paltry $375,000 on targeting Trump and spending more than $4.5 million against the former ambassador to the United Nations, the organization confirmed to The Post.
The focus on Haley has reportedly led to infighting, with Never Back Down CEO Chris Jankowski stepping down last week over reported frustrations about the trajectory of the PAC’s strategy.
As a counter to the DeSantis camp, SFA increased their negative ad spending against the Florida governor, allocating $3.2 million so far this month compared to just under $300,000 in October, according to records.
“Gov. Ron DeSantis has endured more negative advertising against him than every other candidate, and is still the only one who can defeat Donald Trump,” Never Back Down spokesperson Jess Szymanski said. “Never Back Down has amplified DeSantis’ successful, conservative track record, which stands in stark contrast to the establishment flip-flops of Nikki Haley, and his commitment to putting country over self, unlike Donald Trump. Gov. DeSantis is the leader and fighter our country needs.”
DeSantis’ campaign has argued Haley’s mudslingling only helps the GOP front-runner
“Nikki Haley and her donors are greedily wasting millions of dollars targeting Ron DeSantis in Iowa,” DeSantis deputy campaign manager David Polyansky said in a statement to The Post. “Because a DeSantis voter would go to Trump as their second choice, every negative ad she runs against DeSantis only helps advance Donald Trump’s candidacy rather than advances her own standing.
“The truth is that every dollar Nikki Haley raises and spends hitting Ron DeSantis should be reported as an in-kind contribution to the Trump campaign.”
An October Des Moines Register poll showed that 41% of Iowans who supported DeSantis picked Trump as their second choice, with just 27% saying Haley was their No. 2.
Meanwhile, 34% of Haley supporters chose DeSantis as their second option, with only 12% picking Trump as their alternate.
Backers of other White House hopefuls have spent more than $25 million opposing the Florida governor, and a little more than $18 million against Trump, according to data published by Rob Pyers, research director for the California Target Book.
“It’s very easy to punch Ron DeSantis, his record is a target-rich environment littered with pro-[Chinese Communist Party] positions and anti-American polities like killing off Social Security and Medicare,” Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung said in reaction to Haley PAC’s spending.
MAGA Inc., the main Trump-supporting super PAC, has spent more than $23 million on ads opposing DeSantis and just over $6.7 million against Biden.
On the campaign trail, DeSantis and Haley have been hesitant to fully denounce Trump’s record, with both candidates saying they would support his Republican nomination even if he was convicted in one of his upcoming criminal trials.
Both White House hopefuls have, however, stepped up their criticism over the course of the race.
DeSantis has called on Trump to join the other candidates at the GOP debates and has warned that Trump would only “energize” Democrats and would lead to a Biden win.
Haley has said “drama and chaos,” follow the former commander-in-chief, but added that she agrees with a lot of his policies.
