Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* As Gov. Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign struggles, the Florida Republican has now replaced his campaign manager, bringing in James Uthmeier, his longtime chief of staff, to succeed Generra Peck. Whether this counts as a new reboot or a continuation of the old reboot remains an open question.
* While many campaign watchers will be focused on Ohio today, there are also primaries in Mississippi, including some GOP contests in statewide offices.
* It wasn’t easy, and it took a long while, but former Vice President Mike Pence has apparently qualified for his party’s first presidential primary debate, which is scheduled for two weeks from tomorrow. Whether his former running mate will join him on the stage is unclear.
* In New Hampshire, the latest NHJournal/co-efficient poll found Donald Trump leading the GOP field in the first primary state with 43% support, followed by DeSantis and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who were tied for second with 9% each. Former Ambassador Nikki Haley was fourth in the survey with 7%, and no other candidate topped 5%.
* In Nevada, the Republicans’ field of U.S. Senate candidates continues to grow: Jeff Gunter, a dermatologist who was ambassador to Iceland in the Trump administration, kicked off his campaign yesterday. Among Gunter’s notable primary rivals is Jim Marchant, an election denier and failed secretary of state candidate, and Sam Brown, a retired Army officer and failed Senate candidate. * There are still plenty of questions about who the candidates in Arizona’s U.S. Senate race will be, but according to a new Emerson College poll, in three-way contests featuring incumbent independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego enjoys modest leads. * The same survey found Trump crushing his intra-party competition in the Grand Canyon State, leading DeSantis, 58% to 11%. * While DeSantis agreed to debate Gov. Gavin Newsom, the difficult negotiations between the Florida Republican and California Democrat over the ground rules suggest the event might not happen after all.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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