新罕布什尔州曼彻斯特共和党总统候选人提名竞争的焦点已经转移到新罕布什尔州在周二的初选之前。但随着挑战者之一、佛罗里达州州长罗恩·德桑蒂斯(Ron DeSantis)走遍该州，他的竞选活动也将注意力集中在一场更为遥远的竞争上——南卡罗来纳州2月24日的初选。

与他的竞争对手、前总统唐纳德·川普和前南卡罗莱纳州州长妮基·黑利不同，德桑蒂斯没有直接飞往新罕布什尔州在周一的爱荷华州党团会议后在那场比赛中，他远远落后于特朗普，而是直奔棕榈之州。

周二，他在那里为格林维尔集会整理了一个飞机库，并在哥伦比亚州议会大厦举行了新闻发布会。

据了解德桑蒂斯竞选团队想法的人士透露，虽然他及时返回新罕布什尔州参加了一场计划中的晚间集会，但该集会最终因天气原因被取消，德桑蒂斯将在新罕布什尔州选民投票前在南卡罗来纳州做更多停留。

一名高级竞选官员证实，德桑蒂斯的大部分员工将被转移到南卡罗来纳州，他将于周六和周日在那里主持竞选活动。

这种做法违背了总统竞选者的典型策略，他们倾向于利用新罕布什尔州在提名日历上的第二名位置，在新罕布什尔州花掉爱荷华州和新罕布什尔州之间的所有差距。

但德桑蒂斯的竞选团队认为，有机会在海莉的家乡新罕布什尔州对海莉施加压力，而他在新罕布什尔州的不利影响有限。根据538对该州的最新平均民调显示，他在新罕布什尔州的公众支持率已跌至落后海莉约25个百分点。

在南卡罗来纳州，德桑蒂斯落后于海莉一半，并获得了比她更多的州议员的支持。

然而，根据538的数据，他们每个人在这两个州都落后特朗普两位数。

一位与德桑蒂斯竞选团队成员交谈过的人士告诉美国广播公司新闻(ABC News)，他的助手认为，在南卡罗来纳州，他可能会在海莉的家乡击败她，从而使她退出竞选，并最终创造他几个月来一直寻求的德桑蒂斯-特朗普两人初选。

就海莉而言，她认为同样的情况会发生逆转——通过在新罕布什尔州的强势表现，她在该州的民调中排名第二，她可以帮助终结德桑蒂斯的候选人资格。他们两人都公开发誓要继续竞选。

德桑蒂斯期待着几周之后的比赛，这对他周围的人来说并不意外。

“他认为这是一场马拉松。德桑蒂斯国家金融顾问委员会联合主席尼克·亚罗西告诉美国广播公司(ABC News)。

根据Iarossi和其他与竞选活动有关的人的说法，德桑蒂斯私下里表示，他将至少参加3月5日的超级星期二比赛。

“我们将有足够的资金和一个有动力的团队来筹集资金，”亚罗西说，并补充说竞选团队准备“在超级星期二与特朗普进行一场两人竞选。”

德桑蒂斯在爱荷华州失利几小时后，为即将到来的赛程筹集资金的努力开始了。在周二的一次电话会议上，竞选筹款人认为，尽管德桑蒂斯失败了，但近一半的爱荷华州共和党选民投票给特朗普以外的人，这表明有机会让选民选择另一个人——他们心目中的德桑蒂斯。

2024年1月16日，共和党总统候选人、前联合国大使妮基·黑利在新罕布什尔州布雷顿森林的竞选活动中握手

查尔斯·克鲁帕/美联社

周二在南卡罗来纳州哥伦比亚市，州长表示他将在该州投入更多时间和资源。

“我认为你会看到我们更多地出现在这里，不仅仅是我更多地出现在这个州，还有付费媒体，我们将能够在那里讲述我们的故事，”他告诉记者。

“虽然可能还需要几周时间才能完全到达那里，但很快这将是一场两个人的比赛。尽管花了2400万美元在罗恩·德桑蒂斯的虚假负面广告上，妮基·黑利还是没能给自己买到她迫切想要的致命一击...德桑蒂斯的发言人安德鲁·罗密欧说:“由于未能在2月24日赢得家乡州的选举，现在她将退出竞选。”

海莉竞选团队发言人奥利维亚·佩雷斯·古巴斯在一份声明中回击道:“这是唐纳德·特鲁姆普和妮基·黑利之间的二人竞选。因为我们的竞选生活在现实中。罗恩·德桑蒂斯的竞选生活在迪士尼的魔法王国。"

南卡罗来纳州的一些德桑蒂斯的支持者表示，他们欢迎对他们州的关注增加。

“我认为德桑蒂斯州长在南卡罗来纳州尽早开始工作至关重要，”支持他的州众议员布兰登·古菲说。“由于我们自己的州长(亨利·麦克马斯特)支持特朗普，而他的另一个对手是前州长，他需要迅速传达他的信息。”

古菲说，德桑蒂斯“是选票上最保守的人”。

超级政治行动委员会人员调整

一位知情官员周三告诉ABC新闻，支持德桑蒂斯的超级政治行动委员会(super PAC Never Back Down)正在裁员至少15名员工。该委员会帮助安排了德桑蒂斯很大一部分的实地竞选活动。

在被解雇的人员中，有一些是在爱荷华州工作的人员，他们帮助州长建立了一个广泛的地面游戏，帮助他在党团会议中获得第二名。

据这位官员说，内华达州的一些员工也被解雇了。

一位知情人士称，这些举措是在某些州投票后大多数政治运作都会经历的正常调整。

“我不想忽视这一点，”该人士表示，“但与此同时，我希望能让人们更容易理解，这在总统竞选政治中就像呼吸一样正常。”

超级政治行动委员会的一名发言人将这些举措描述为爱荷华州政治工作人员的“有计划”重组，“同时为其余工作人员提供1月份剩余时间的工资。”

然而，另一位了解裁员情况的人士对这些举措表示失望。据这位人士称，这表明该公司的运营越来越“不像是一场活动的延伸，而更像是一家精品旅游和活动服务机构。”

Never Back Down的创始人肯·库奇内利(Ken Cuccinelli)在一条短信中告诉ABC新闻，“我们对我们团队在爱荷华州的实地工作感到非常高兴。”

“永不退缩”本周将在新罕布什尔州为州长举行活动，包括周三的两个市政厅活动。

DeSantis sets sights on weakening Haley in South Carolina as both push for 1-on-1 race with Trump

MANCHESTER, N.H. --The spotlight in the race for the Republican presidential nomination has moved to New Hampshireahead of Tuesday's primary. But as one of the challengers, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, traverses the state, his operation is also focusing attention on a more distant contest -- South Carolina's Feb. 24 primary.

Unlike his rivals, former President Donald Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, DeSantis did not fly straight to New Hampshireafter Monday's Iowa caucuses, in which he placed a distant second behind Trump, instead beelining for the Palmetto State.

There, on Tuesday, he packed an airline hangar for a Greenville rally and held a press conference at the state Capitol in Columbia.

And while he returned to New Hampshire in time for a planned evening rally that was eventually canceled due to weather, DeSantis will make more stops in South Carolina before New Hampshire voters cast their ballots, according to people with knowledge of his campaign's thinking.

A senior campaign official confirms a majority of DeSantis' staff is being relocated to South Carolina and he will be hosting campaign events there on Saturday and Sunday.

That approach bucks the typical strategy of presidential contenders, who tend to capitalize on New Hampshire's second-place spot on the nominating calendar by spending the entirety of the gap between Iowa and New Hampshire in the latter state.

But the DeSantis campaign sees some opportunity to put pressure on Haley in her home state with limited downside for him in New Hampshire, where his public support has plummeted to roughly 25 points behind Haley, according to 538's latest polling average of the state.

In South Carolina, DeSantis trails Haley by half that and has secured more endorsements from state legislators than she has.

Each of them, however, still trails Trump by double digits in both states, according to 538.

A person who has spoken to members of the DeSantis campaign told ABC News that his aides view South Carolina as a state where, by potentially beating Haley in her home state, he could knock her from the race and finally create the DeSantis-Trump two-person primary that he has sought for months.

Haley, for her part, sees the same scenario playing out in reverse -- that by having a strong showing in New Hampshire, where she is a much closer No. 2 in polling, she could help put an end to DeSantis' candidacy. Both of them have publicly vowed to remain in the race.

That DeSantis is looking ahead to a contest still weeks away comes as little surprise to those around him.

"He views this as a marathon. Taking on a former president won't be done in one or two states," Nick Iarossi, a co-chairman of DeSantis' national finance advisory board, told ABC News.

According to Iarossi and others connected to the campaign, DeSantis has said privately that he will remain in the race at least through Super Tuesday on March 5.

"We will have enough money and a motivated team to raise it," said Iarossi, adding the campaign is ready to "scrap and fight our way to a two-person race with Trump on Super Tuesday."

The effort to raise cash for the upcoming stretch started hours after DeSantis' loss in Iowa. On a call on Tuesday, campaign fundraisers argued that, despite DeSantis' defeat, nearly half of the Iowa Republican electorate voting for someone other than Trump showed there was an opportunity to give voters a choice for someone else -- in their mind, DeSantis.

In Columbia, South Carolina, on Tuesday, the governor said he would be devoting more time and resources in the state.

"I think you're going to see us be present more, not just in terms of me being in the state more but also in terms of paid media, where we're going to be able to tell our story," he told reporters.

"While it may take a few more weeks to fully get there, this will be a two-person race soon enough. Despite spending $24 million in false negative ads against Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley couldn't buy herself the kill shot she so desperately wanted ... and now she will be out of this race after failing to win her home state on February 24," DeSantis spokesman Andrew Romeo said.

Haley campaign spokeswoman Olivia Perez-Cubas shot back in a statement: "There's a reason this is a two person race between Donald Trump and Nikki Haley. Because our campaign is living in reality. Ron DeSantis' campaign is living in Disney's Magic Kingdom."

Some of DeSantis' supporters in South Carolina said they are welcoming the increased attention on their state.

"I think it is vital for Gov. DeSantis to start early in South Carolina," said state Rep. Brandon Guffey, who has endorsed him. "With our own governor [Henry McMaster] supporting Trump and his other opponent being a former governor, he needs to get his message out quickly."

Desantis "is the most conservative person on the ballot," said Guffey.

Super PAC staffing shuffle

The pro-DeSantis super PAC Never Back Down, which has helped arrange a significant part of DeSantis' on-the-ground campaigning, is cutting at least 15 staffers from its payroll, an official familiar with the move told ABC News on Wednesday.

Among those laid off are staffers who have been based in Iowa, helping build an extensive ground game that helped the governor eke out his second-place finish in the caucuses.

Some Nevada staffers have also been laid off, according to the official.

A person familiar with the moves described them as normal shakeups that most political operations experience after certain states votes.

"I don't want to dismiss this," the person said, "but at the same time, I wish I could make it easier for people to understand that this is as normal in presidential campaign politics as breathing."

A spokesperson for the super PAC described the moves as a "planned" reshuffling of Iowa's political staff "while offering the rest of the staff pay through the rest of January."

Another person with knowledge of the layoffs, however, expressed frustration with the moves, which indicate, according to this person, an operation that is becoming "less of a campaign extension and more of a boutique travel and events service."

Ken Cuccinelli, Never Back Down's founder, told ABC News in a text message, "We are very happy with the job done by our team on the ground in Iowa."

Never Back Down is holding events in New Hampshire this week for the governor, including two town halls on Wednesday.