TRIMMING DOWN

Ron DeSantis Axes a Third of Paid Campaign Staff in Shakeup

The cuts reportedly total 38 staffers in all.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has reportedly laid off a third of his paid campaign staff as the fledging presidential candidate struggles to get his White House bid back on track. The cuts were for 38 staffers in total, Politico reported Tuesday, citing the governor’s advisers. The cuts are reportedly spread across a number of departments and include roughly 10 event planning positions that were announced several weeks ago. The downsizing comes on the heels of the departure of two senior DeSantis advisers, Dave Abrams and Tucker Obenshain, who said they left the campaign to support DeSantis as part of an “outside effort.” In a statement, the DeSantis campaign said: “Following a top-to-bottom review of our organization, we have taken additional, aggressive steps to streamline operations.” It’s unclear if the shakeup is related to strategy or cost-cutting, but the governor has been spending big as he darts around the country in a private jet.