Ron DeSantis’s Most Awkward Campaign Moments

As 45th president of the United States, Donald Trump was impeached twice and incited a deadly insurrection as part of a plot to steal a second term in office. Since leaving Washington, he’s been indicted three times (and counting) on dozens of criminal charges, including obstruction of justice and conspiring to defraud the US. All of these things should have led to a situation in which Trump had absolutely no chance whatsoever of returning to the White House. Yet somehow, he’s not only the leading candidate for the GOP nomination, he’s beating his second-closest rival, Ron DeSantis, by dozens of points. (And beating DeSantis among people who believe he committed “serious federal crimes”!) How to explain such a baffling phenomenon? Part of it probably has to do with the fact that Trump, the consummate conman, has an inexplicable hold on many of his supporters, a large number of which would probably tattoo a picture of his ass to their face* if he asked them to. Then there’s DeSantis’s obsession with eradicating “wokeness,” which polls show Republicans are growing tired of. But also likely not helping the Florida governor’s candidacy? The astonishing amount of awkwardness he displays on the campaign trail, which suggests his previous interactions with other humans have been limited.

Here’s a running list:

The “I’m not a candidate” face

Technically, this occurred before DeSantis officially announced his bid for office but really and truly should be included in the canon. Watching it with the sound off somehow makes it worse.

The laugh heard ’round the world

This happened at a car show in Iowa in May and feels like a situation in which someone working for him should have been like, “This is not what we talked about when we talked about acting natural.”

The laugh to the “This is my nightmare” face

Told in a room full of people that polls show he is badly trailing Trump, DeSantis shouts, “Not here!” and bursts out laughing. But the camera stays on him, and his face ultimately appears to show what he’s actually thinking.

“What’s your name?”

“I’m Tim.”

“Okay.”

Retail politics!