He’s got quite a history that’s attracting people....much of what he’s earned. People aren’t going to check the means of how he got into Ivy league schools - only that he did. Plus his military experience.
Trump was quick to go after him because he certainly sees him as an opponet even though he has not yet declared he’s running.
The corporate-contributed campaign war chest is a hint.
DeSantis also has a good chance in Pennsylvania. His father and grandfather are from the Pittsburgh area—Aliquippa. His grandfather worked in a steel mill there. I think DeSantis still has family there.
His blue-collar roots include him working his way through college and his military service. His parents are graduates of Youngstown State in neighboring Ohio. These are salt of the earth type people. One of his relatives is a Catholic priest. Another is a Catholic nun. This means people of southern European descent who still populate these areas will see DeSantis as one of them.
Trump has no such connections.