Ron DeSantis will formally announce next week that he is running for president, ending months of speculation and beginning what could prove to be a bruising encounter with Donald Trump for the Republican nomination.
The Florida governor, who is 44, has been running a shadow campaign for months. He has toured the country to speak at Republican gatherings, published an autobiography that sets out his vision for America and visited key US allies including Britain.
He is expected to file papers with the federal election commission and make a formal declaration in his home town of Dunedin, Florida — probably before the Memorial Day holiday on May 29.
DeSantis has long been seen as one of the more likely candidates — in what could be