Ron DeSantis Mocked Over 'Eerie' Smile During Gavin Newsom Debate

Ron DeSantis drew mockery from social media users during his debate with Gavin Newsom on Thursday, with commentators calling his smile "eerie."

The Florida governor and Republican primary candidate clashed with Newsom, the California governor, during a Fox News debate hosted by Sean Hannity that was dubbed the Great Red v Blue State Debate.

During the 90-minute event, in which the two discussed major themes including crime, immigration, the U.S.-Mexico border, and the economy, DeSantis said Newsom had tried "to mess California up" with his "leftist ideology," while Newsom accused DeSantis of "intimidating and humiliating people you disagree with."

"You and [former] President Trump are really trying to light democracy on fire," he said.

But reacting to the debate on X, formerly Twitter, users appeared to be more focused on the style rather than the substance of the debate, with DeSantis' smile in particular drawing a big reaction.

One X user wrote: "I've never seen an alleged human struggle this much to perform the act of smiling like DeSantis."

"The DeSantis fake smile is eerie," said another.

A third wrote: "Is there anything creepier than when Ron DeSantis tries to smile?"

While a fourth said: "Ron DeSantis looks like his smile was generated by AI."

However, DeSantis did drum up some support. Conservative commentator Dave Rubin praised DeSantis for his performance, saying he was "calmly just laying out facts and reality."

Newsweek contacted DeSantis' office via email for comment.

Newsom first challenged DeSantis to a debate in September 2022, months before the Republican confirmed his White House bid.

"Hey @GovRonDeSantis, clearly you're struggling, distracted, and busy playing politics with people's lives. Since you have only one overriding need—attention—let's take this up and debate. I'll bring my hair gel. You bring your hairspray. Name the time before election day. @CNN," Newsom wrote in a post on X.

Their acrimonious relationship soured further when DeSantis sent flights filled with migrants to California, prompting Newsom to call for kidnapping charges for the Florida governor.

DeSantis, once seen as Republican frontrunner Donald Trump's biggest rival in the race, has languished in the polls with former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley emerging as a stronger challenger, with the backing of major donors including the Americans for Prosperity Action, a political network of donors founded by the billionaire Koch brothers.

A recent Emerson College poll found 64 percent of Republican primary voters said they supported Trump. Haley had 9 percent of the vote, while 8 percent of voters said they would back DeSantis.

That poll surveyed 662 likely voters from November 17 to 20 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.

"When are you going to drop out and at least give Nikki Haley a shot to take down Donald Trump," Newsom said during the debate.

"You wish," DeSantis replied.

DeSantis also brought a map of what he said showed the quantity of human feces found on the streets of San Francisco to make the point that Newsom was misgoverning California.