What's next for Gov. DeSantis after second place finish in Iowa?

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis finished in second place in Iowa on Monday night as the race now shifts to New Hampshire and South Carolina with questions swirling about what the second place finish will mean for his campaign going forward.

DeSantis outperformed some polling expectations on Monday night finishing at roughly 21% when the Real Clear Politics average of polls showed him at 15.7% before votes were cast. However, Trump won a decisive victory with over 50% of the vote, the largest margin of victory in Iowa Caucus history, in a state where DeSantis had gone "all in" with his campaign's time and resources.

The DeSantis campaign touted the performance by saying that the Florida governor "earned his ticket out of Iowa."

Former Ambassador Nikki Haley, who many pundits believed was surging in Iowa and could potentially finish ahead of DeSantis, finished in 3rd place a couple of points behind DeSantis.

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"They threw everything at Ron DeSantis," a senior DeSantis campaign official told Fox News Digital late Monday night. "They couldn’t kill him. He is not only still standing, but he’s now earned his ticket out of Iowa. This is going to be a long battle ahead, but that is what this campaign is built for. The stakes are too high for this nation and we will not back down."

During his Monday night speech, DeSantis struck a defiant tone while speaking to his supporters.

"I can tell you, because of your support, in spite of all of that they threw at us, everyone against us, we've got our ticket punched out of Iowa," DeSantis said.

"This is our responsibility to carry this torch and to preserve this sacred fire of liberty, DeSantis said. "We thank you for your