DeSantis reacts to Ingraham’s suggestion he debate Haley directly: ‘Count me in’

When Fox News anchor Laura Ingraham suggested he go one-on-one in a debate with 2024 rival Nikki Haley, Florida Gov. Ron Desantis replied, “Count me in!”

“I’d like to see Ron DeSantis versus Nikki Haley. ‘The Angle’ volunteers our show as a platform,” Ingraham said Wednesday. “And the two of them, I think, need to debate it out, that’s what we need to see at this point. And I think America would like to see that as well. And we’re offering ‘The Angle’ to do that.”

“Count me in!” the governor replied on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

Haley in recent weeks has emerged as a growing threat to DeSantis, who was once positioned to be the top alternative to former President Trump’s wide lead in Republican primary polling.

The two presidential hopefuls have exchanged barbs over a variety of issues in recent weeks including the U.S.’s acceptance of Gaza refugees, Haley’s relationship with China, along with accusations that DeSantis is lying about his record on fracking and offshore drilling.

The Florida governor most recently called Haley’s proposal for social media verification “dangerous and unconstitutional” and compared it to the Chinese Communist government. The governor’s team posted a clip on the campaign’s war room account Thursday, which appears to liken Haley to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton discussing “fake news.”

Recent polling shows Haley appearing to close in on DeSantis’s second-place spot in the GOP primary.

A Des Moines Register poll released late last month shows Trump maintaining a strong lead in Iowa, while DeSantis and Haley are tied for second place. Since the same poll was conducted in August, Haley gained 10 points and DeSantis dropped 3 points.

The Iowa caucuses will kick off the Republican presidential nominating cycle in January, with all eyes focused on the key early voting state.

Haley appears to be making a final push to secure Iowa, recently announcing plans for $10 million in TV, radio and digital advertising in Iowa and New Hampshire starting in December.

DeSantis’s campaign meanwhile has said it’s “confident the Iowa voters will see who will represent them and their values.” The Florida governor has also received the endorsement of Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R).

In New Hampshire, an Emerson College Polling survey released Wednesday showed Haley emerging as the runner-up to Trump, with her support increasing from 4 percent in August to 18 percent in November.

Asked about the potential debate with Haley, the DeSantis campaign took a swipe at former President Trump, who did not attend the first three GOP primary debates. 

“Unlike Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis is willing to stand on the debate stage and lay out a plan to help Americans who are being harmed by out-of-control prices, an open southern border, and an increasingly dangerous world,” Bryan Grffin, the DeSantis campaign’s press secretary said in a statement to The Hill. 

“He [DeSantis] will debate Nikki Haley. He is set to debate Gavin Newsom. And if Trump finds the courage, Ron DeSantis will debate him too,” Griffin continued.

DeSantis will be participating in a one-on-one debate later this month with California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) that will be moderated by Fox News host Sean Hannity.

The Hill reached out to Haley’s campaign for further comment.

Updated 5:00 p.m. ET Nov. 16.