Florida Governor Ron DeSantis wanted to be king.For a moment — a real, electric flash between the fall of 2022 and the spring of 2023 — it looked like he might be. He was the governor of the third most populous state in the country, a combat-tested Navy veteran, a Harvard- and Yale-educated culture warrior who had turned Florida into a hard-right policy lab in the wake of his handling of the pandemic. He was the man who had just beaten Charlie Crist by nearly 20 points, flipped Miami-Dade red for the first time in two decades, and had Rupert Murdoch's empire begging him to take the Republican crown.Then he ran against Donald Trump.What followed was the kind of tailspin political strategists dread. Once hailed as the party's future, he's now struggling to stay relevant in a political landscape consumed by Trump. And while few are ready to rule out a comeback entirely, it's clear everything has changed.The AnointingDeSantis entered Florida politics the old-fashioned way: Ivy League pedigree, military valor, Tea Party credentials. But what really launched him was a blessing from Trump. "He ran for governor and won thanks to Donald Trump's endorsement," Eduardo Gamarra, a political science professor at Florida International University, told Newsweek. "He won, but just barely, in the 2018 election."His campaign leaned into the Trump effect hard. In a now-infamous ad, DeSantis taught his toddler to "build the wall" with toy bricks. He read bedtime stories from a "Make America Great Again" sign. The MAGA mimicry worked. DeSantis took office in 2019 and immediately set about turning Florida into a fortress of conservative values.He went all-in on culture war politics — from COVID-19 reopening battles to signing the "Don't Say Gay" bill, from six-week abortion bans to a high-profile war with Disney, the state's most important employer. The message was clear: Florida was the "free state," and DeSantis was the steward of that freedom."Despite being a young politician," Gamarra said, "he believed he could translate those Florida policies into national achievements and position himself as Trump's natural heir."By the time DeSantis cruised to reelection in 2022, national conservative media had already crowned him. Fox News couldn't get enough. The New York Post called him "DeFuture." It seemed the base was ready to move on from the chaos of the Trump years— toward someone who could deliver the same results with more discipline.DeSantis seemed to think so, too. What he didn't expect was that, while Trump might have been down, he was not out. In fact, he was about to embark on the greatest political comeback in modern U.S. history.The Gamble"In many ways, Trump's recent assault on DEI was inspired by DeSantis' policies in Florida's schools," political historian Matthew Dallek told Newsweek. "His anti-woke rhetoric — DeSantis' two terms as governor have provided the Trump administration with a template, a playbook, that is now being implemented on a national scale."That influence could have positioned him as a kingmaker. Instead, he tried to knock off the king.By 2022, DeSantis was openly flirting with a presidential run. But instead of striking early, he waited for Florida's legislative session to end. Trump, however, was not waiting. He launched fast and started swinging harder. By the time DeSantis announced his bid in May — on a glitchy Twitter livestream alongside Elon Musk — the "DeFuture" narrative was already slipping away."His presidential campaign was poorly run, and he proved to be an awkward national candidate who never lived up to the 2022 hype," Dallek added.Trump formally announced his bid for a second term in November 2022, and his attacks on his former protege were relentless: "Meatball Ron," "DeSanctimonious," "Shutdown Ron." As Trump's polling numbers rose, DeSantis' sank in turn. Donors began to back away, even with the governor enjoying support from Musk, the world's richest man. Endorsements dried up. In the lead up to the Iowa caucuses, DeSantis had practically taken up residence in the state. It didn't matter. He placed a distant second and dropped out before New Hampshire."I do not have a clear path to victory," he said in his video announcement. It was a quiet exit. He endorsed Trump immediately.Retreat to FloridaThe campaign's collapse was widely attributed to DeSantis's "lack of charisma" and Trump's iron grip on a fiercely loyal base. By the time he bowed out, even many conservatives had shifted their hopes to other contenders, like Nikki Haley. For DeSantis, it was time to retreat to safer ground.But back home, he found something had changed: Florida Republicans no longer feared him.As the governor nears the end of his final term, many lawmakers who were once loyal are now trying to limit his power. They've restricted his ability to transport migrants across the country, started reviewing his vetoes, and are pushing to ban the use of taxpayer money in political campaigns on constitutional amendments. This comes after his administration spent millions last year fighting ballot measures on abortion and marijuana."This legislative session in Florida has shown how much his influence has weakened," said Michael Binder, a political science professor at the University of North Florida. "The State House has pushed back, he's been clashing with the Senate, and the session was supposed to end three weeks ago — but there's still no budget."Even the party's inner circle began turning. "It's not just a relationship between DeSantis and Trump," Binder added. "It's really a dynamic between Team DeSantis — mainly him and his wife Casey — and Team Trump."Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis, once seen as a rising star in her own right, is now facing growing scrutiny as well. Her political prospects have faded following a scandal involving the alleged diversion of $10 million from a Medicaid settlement to her Hope Florida Foundation. Reports suggest some of that money ended up benefiting PACs aligned with her husband, turning the issue into a major controversy in the Sunshine State."There's going to be a federal investigation," Gamarra said. "It's become a serious issue for DeSantis."Casey had been seen as the governor's heir apparent, with rumors of a 2026 gubernatorial run. That plan now looks far shakier, especially with Trump publicly supporting Republican Representative Byron Donalds for the state's top job."DeSantis misread the situation. He thought the party was ready to move on from Trump after three straight losses, but he failed to see that most Republican voters remain fiercely loyal to him. And you can't beat Trump from within the party," Todd Belt, a professor at George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management, told Newsweek.Frozen AmbitionDeSantis may yet run for Senate. He may even try again for president in 2028. But his path is clouded, according to the analysts who spoke to Newsweek. He burned his bridge to Trump, then tried to rebuild it — holding a quiet meeting with the president at a South Florida golf club and offering to raise money for Trump's reelection. But the famously resentful president didn't fully buy in."Trump holds grudges, and DeSantis was seen as disloyal to Trump," said Belt. "His influence in the party is minimal at this point, mostly because he didn't articulate a vision for its future beyond anti-wokeness.""The DeSantis-Trump feud appears to have mellowed," added Binder. "But there are absolutely people in both camps who haven't forgotten—and won't forget."What DeSantis can't outrun, though, is the perception problem. Even among Republicans who like his policies, he's never been beloved. "His biggest issue is likability," Binder said. "He lacks the charisma that successful presidential candidates tend to have."It's a sharp fall for a man who once had a full media machine behind him. DeSantis has seen himself eclipsed by rising newcomers in Trump's circle, notably vice-president JD Vance and even fellow Floridian Marco Rubio, the former senator and current secretary of state, both named by the president this month as his potential successors.Gamarra, the FIU professor, put it bluntly: "Trump hasn't done anything to elevate or support DeSantis — he considers him a figure of the past."Too Early to Count Him OutThe crown may have slipped, but the game isn't over.Even now, DeSantis continues looking for openings — not just in Florida, but nationally. This week, he criticized congressional Republicans for failing to codify federal workforce and spending cuts introduced under Elon Musk's semi-defunct Department of Government Efficiency."We have a Republican Congress," DeSantis said Tuesday in an unusually sharp attack on his own party. "And to this day, we're in the end of May — past Memorial Day — and not one cent in DOGE cuts have been implemented by the Congress."With Musk formally stepping back from government roles, DeSantis is seizing the moment to cast himself as the fiscal hawk Trumpism has lacked, according to historian Matthew Dallek."He could absolutely still emerge as a top presidential contender," he said. "Few things are permanent in politics."While Trump remains dominant today, his track record includes three national defeats: the 2018 midterms, the 2020 presidential loss and the GOP's underwhelming 2022 midterms. Another disappointing performance in 2026 could shift party dynamics."There could absolutely be an opening," Belt said. "But it depends on how long Trump holds on to the center of gravity."Dallek sees similar possibilities: "DeSantis is young, a two-term governor of one of the nation's largest states, and his policies have had a significant influence on the Trump administration."The road back to national relevance depends on variables beyond his control. One is time: at 46, DeSantis can afford to wait. Another is circumstance. If Trump's second administration stumbles further in the polls, he could present the right flank of the party with a conservative alternative, free from the MAGA label that either Vance or Rubio would carry."We don't even know what will happen in 2026 yet. The full economic impact of Trump's tariff policies may not have hit. If Republicans get walloped in 2026, or the economy takes a nosedive, being closely tied to Trump might become a liability," said Binder, the George Washington professor.That message, while unsuccessful during his aborted 2024 campaign, may resonate more in 2028 — especially if voters tire of the chaos that follows Trump. The next two years could well determine whether DeSantis gets another shot.