Wearing black boots, jeans and an untucked shirt — the fundraiser’s dress code specified “ranch casual” — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Saturday tried to woo Republican voters in Nevada still loyal to the former president Donald J. Trump that the party’s formula for winning the election was beyond its useful life.
Headlining a conservative jamboree in the swing state, where loyalty to Mr. Trump is still deep, Mr. DeSantis never mentioned his rival for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination during a speech in Gardnerville, Nevada.
But the Florida governor sought to draw a not-so-subtle contrast between himself and the former president, a former ally who is the party’s overwhelming favorite in a crowded Republican field. He described last year’s mid-term elections as another disappointment in a string of defeats for the party, while touting his margin of victory of more than 1.2 million votes in his re-election last November .
“We developed a culture of losing in this game,” said Mr. DeSantis, adding, “You’re not going to get a mulligan in the 2024 election.”
Mr. DeSantis spoke for nearly an hour at the Basque Fry, a barbecue fundraiser that supports conservative groups in Nevada.
Steven Cheung, campaign spokesman for Mr. Trump responded to Mr. DeSantis in a statement to The Times on Saturday.
“Ron DeSantis is a proven liar and fraud,” he said. “That’s why he’s collapsing in the polls, both nationally and statewide. He should watch out before his chances in 2028 disappear completely.”
The Basque Fry has grown in stature since it was first held in 2015, drawing a stream of Republican presidential candidates to the Corley Ranch in the Carson Valley with its rugged Sierra Nevada backdrop.
Past headliners have included Ted Cruz, Scott Walker, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina. Former Vice President Mike Pence, who earlier this month entered the race, had been scheduled to attend in 2017 but canceled as Hurricane Harvey was barreling down the Gulf Coast.
It’s a chance for White House hopefuls to pitch to grassroots conservatives in Nevada, a crucial early testing ground in 2021. replaced its party-run caucuses with primaries. Republicans oppose the change, approved by the State Legislature, and they are sue the state to maintain the caucuses.
The visit of Mr. DeSantis in Nevada marked a week in which Mr. Trump dominated the news cycle with his appearance Tuesday in a 37-count federal indictment over his handling of classified documents after leaving office.
As Trump’s main Republican rival, DeSantis did not mention the indictment directly, instead echoing GOP attacks on the Justice Department and pledging to replace the FBI director if elected.
“We will end the weaponization of this government once and for all,” said Mr. DeSantis.
In 2016, the last presidential election during which the GOP did not have a sitting president, Mr. Trump won the Republican caucuses in Nevada, where rural activists and Mormon voters wield influence. He finished 22 percentage points ahead of his closest challenger, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.
During last fall’s midterm elections, Mr. trump campaigned for Republicans in Nevada at a rally in Minden, which is next to Gardnerville. The election turned out to be a mixed bag for the GOP, which flipped the governor’s office but lost key Senate and House races, including the seat held by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat who had been considered vulnerable
Ms. Cortez Masto’s defeat of Adam Laxalt, a former Nevada attorney general who was the de facto host of Saturday’s fundraiser, helped give Democrats outright control of the Senate.
Mr. Laxalt, who was Mr. DeSantis’ roommate when both were Navy officers, introduced him to the crowd of about 2,500.
“That’s the kind of leader we need,” he said.
Mr. Laxalt started the Alevins Basques in 2015, building on one tradition started by his grandfatherPaul Laxalt, a former US senator and governor of Nevada who died in 2018.
Northern Nevada has one of the nation’s highest concentrations of people of Basque descenta group that includes Mr. Laxalt, who also ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2018.
Jim McCrossin, 78, a retiree from Virginia City, Nev., who polled the ranch wearing a DeSantis cap, said he had previously supported Trump but was concerned about his eligibility.
“I think there’s so much hatred for him,” she said, adding, “Trump has been arrested twice, and this probably won’t be the last time.”
He said that Mr. DeSantis “doesn’t have the drama.”
His household is divided: His wife, Jacquie McCrossin, said she was still rooting for Mr. Trump, even though he was wearing a DeSantis cap.
Shellie Wood, 72, a retired nail technician and gold miner from Winnemucca, Nev., who wore a Trump 2020 camouflage cap, said Mr. DeSantis would be a strong running mate for Mr. Trump, but that it was not his time.
Even so, Ms. Wood said that Mr. DeSantis had made a positive impression on him with his Florida record.
“He’s stood up to Disney, and that’s something that a lot of people didn’t have the courage to do,” he said.
Mr. DeSantis repeatedly reminded the crowd of his dispute with Disney, which he and other Republicans made an avatar of “woke” culture after the company criticized a state law banning classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity.
In preparation for his formal debut as a candidate last month, Mr. DeSantis struggled with being labeled by the media and his rivals as uncomfortable in retail politics and in one-on-one settings with voters.
Before going up to the podium, with the snowy mountains behind, Mr. DeSantis mingled with a group of VIPs for about 30 minutes at a reception that was closed to the media.
Outside the reception, Casey DeSantis, the governor’s wife, who has been a ubiquitous activist and influencer on policies in her husband’s administration, took selfies and signed autographs for local Republicans. He also wore boots.
Although Mr. DeSantis impressed many in attendance, there was still a pro-Trump undercurrent at the event. Shawn Newman, 58, a truck driver from Fernley, Nev., who stood near a table with a DeSantis campaign skate while wearing a ubiquitous red Trump cap, said Mr. Trump was still your candidate
“Trump is above his reach,” he said of the other Republican candidates.
While Mr. DeSantis was working a rope after his speech, a man handed him a campaign hat to sign. In his other hand, he wore a Trump cap.
