Vivek Ramaswamy’s splash in the Republican primary has seemingly come out of nowhere—to everyone but himself. When the longshot 2024 candidate announced his presidential plans to a group of conservative operatives earlier this year, several on the call told ABC News they were baffled. But Ramaswamy wasn’t short on confidence. He reportedly told the group that his presidential run could be enough to deter Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis from running altogether, and continued telling other conservative activists the same in the lead-up to his campaign launch. Of course, that wouldn’t be the case, but DeSantis’ flailing campaign shows that he might not be the threat to Trump that many had predicted. Meanwhile, Ramaswamy has steadily climbed in the polls, despite low name recognition.
