DeSantis dropped out of the Republican presidential primary, saying he does not see a "clear path" to win following his second-place finish in the Iowa caucuses. His announcement came just days before the second nominating contest in New Hampshire.

While DeSantis offered a "better articulated and less inflammatory version" of Trump's agenda without the legal baggage, it remained a question as to why Republican voters would switch candidates, says Grant Reeher, director of the Campbell Public Affairs Institute.

"He was bound in a strange Gordian Knot—he only became a national figure because he was similar to Trump in many ways, but not Trump. Smoother, more refined, younger, better informed on the issues, but still aggressive on policy and willing to fight the cultural battles the Right seems to care about. Is that enough to persuade a loyal Republican voter, who is weighing that against a proven battler? Apparently not," Reeher says.

Read more in the Newsweek article, "The Rise and Fall of Ron DeSantis."