Republican Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy has endorsed former President Donald Trump for the 2024 nomination, becoming the third GOP governor to back him.
News of Dunleavy’s endorsement came from Politico, and it will give the former president crucial support in a state that will “hold its nominating contest on the all-important ‘Super Tuesday’ primary date”:
The endorsement comes as Trump expands his broad lead in support from Republican governors and federal lawmakers over his rivals in the GOP presidential primary. With Dunleavy’s backing, Trump has earned the support of three of the five Republican governors who have endorsed in the race. Trump has also received the support of over 80 members of Congress, more than 16 times the amount of his nearest rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The former president has been aggressively courting the support of prospective endorsees; he recently spoke by phone with Dunleavy, whose state is expected to hold its primary on March 5, 2024, the same day that over a dozen states are expected to hold their nominating contests.
The former president previously endorsed Dunleavy three times in his bid for governor, including in 2022 when he faced a recall attempt. The Trump campaign will reportedly release a video on Tuesday thanking the governor for the endorsement.
President Donald Trump listens as Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy (R-AK) speaks at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 16, 2020. (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
The Hill reported that Dunleavy’s office could not confirm reports of the endorsement, “citing state ethics requirements not to comment on campaign matters.”
News of the endorsement comes after the former president declared on Sunday that he will “not be doing the debates” amid such strong poll numbers putting him high above his opponents. He made his declaration on his Truth Social account, citing a CBS poll that apparently had him 46 points ahead of Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“New CBS POLL, just out, has me leading the field by ‘legendary’ numbers. TRUMP 62%, 46 Points above DeSanctimonious (who is crashing like an ailing bird!), Ramaswamy 7%, Pence 5%, Scott 3%, Haley 2%, Sloppy Chris Christie 2%, ‘Aida’ Hutchinson 1%,” he said.
“The public knows who I am & what a successful Presidency I had, with Energy Independence, Strong Borders & Military, Biggest EVER Tax & Regulation Cuts, No Inflation, Strongest Economy in History, & much more. I WILL THEREFORE NOT BE DOING THE DEBATES!” he added.
The former president’s post comes after he said in a recent interview that he has no desire to step onto the debate stage with people polling at one or two percent.
“I don’t know that I should be doing it, to be up against a hostile network with hostile people that are polling at zero. I mean, they don’t have any votes. One of them had actually a zero with an arrow pointing left. I’m trying to figure out what that means. It probably means they have too many votes, you know, like the election. But they’re at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, maybe—and I’m in the 60s. I see a poll the other day … I’m at 78, and you have people at zero,” Trump said.
As Breitbart News reported, the CBS News/YouGov poll gave the former president the biggest lead over his primary opponents, which comes in the wake of a string of indictments related to the 2020 election.
Former President Donald Trump pauses for cheers on August 5, 2023, in Columbia, South Carolina. (Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty)
“Former President Donald Trump posted his biggest lead yet over his rivals at 62 percent of likely Republican primary voters, according to a CBS News/YouGov poll published Sunday,” reported Breitbart News. “His top rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, has fallen farther back from earlier this summer, the poll showed, to 16 percent. The other candidates are in the single digits, with third runner-up Vivek Ramaswamy at seven percent.”
Paul Roland Bois joined Breitbart News in 2021. He also directed the award-winning feature film, EXEMPLUM, which can be viewed for FREE on YouTube or Tubi. A high-quality, ad-free stream can also be purchased on Google Play or Vimeo on Demand. Follow him on Twitter @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.
