Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will announce his 2024 presidential campaign on Wednesday, several news organisations reported, ending months of speculation over when he would join a crowded Republican field.
As things stand, Mr DeSantis is the only Republican with a significant backing apart from former president Donald Trump, who remains the front-runner by a large margin.
NBC News, Fox and other outlets said Mr DeSantis would make his announcement during a live Twitter Spaces interview with the social media platform's chief executive Elon Musk.
The billionaire appeared to confirm this by retweeting a Fox reporter.
However, Mr DeSantis has not yet filed papers with the Federal Election Commission to declare his candidacy.
The event is scheduled to start at 6pm EST.
The governor is currently polling in second place within his party. While he leads several other nomination hopefuls, Mr Trump remains comfortably ahead of the pack, with more than 53 per cent of the Republican vote compared to only 22 per cent for Mr DeSantis, according to FiveThirtyEight.
Mr DeSantis recently travelled abroad to visit US allies, including Israel, calling the country one of America's “most valued and trusted” partners.
He is known for his hard-right policies in the state of Florida, where recently passed legislation has taken aim at black, Latino and LGBTQ communities. Prominent rights groups have advised against travel to the state.
The Florida governor is also spearheading efforts to control the theme parks run by Disney, which has started a legal fight and already caused some financial losses for the tourism-dependent Sunshine State.
When it comes to foreign affairs, Mr DeSantis has a mixed record of traditional Republican and Trump-style isolationist posturing.
Having previously deployed to Iraq during his time as a Navy lawyer, he has been a sharp critic of Iran and has voiced support for the US relationship with its Kurdish regional allies.
As a conservative congressman, he once endorsed arming Ukraine against Russia. But he recently drew criticism for calling Russia's invasion of Ukraine a “territorial dispute” – a comment he later backtracked.
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
The specs
Engine: 2.3-litre, turbo four-cylinder
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Power: 300hp
Torque: 420Nm
Price: Dh189,900
On sale: now
A little about CVRL
Founded in 1985 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL) is a government diagnostic centre that provides testing and research facilities to the UAE and neighbouring countries.
One of its main goals is to provide permanent treatment solutions for veterinary related diseases.
The taxidermy centre was established 12 years ago and is headed by Dr Ulrich Wernery.
Profile Periscope Media
Founder: Smeetha Ghosh, one co-founder (anonymous)
Launch year: 2020
Employees: four – plans to add another 10 by July 2021
Financing stage: $250,000 bootstrap funding, approaching VC firms this year
Investors: Co-founders
SPECS
Toyota land Cruiser 2020 5.7L VXR
Engine: 5.7-litre V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 362hp
Torque: 530Nm
Price: Dh329,000 (base model 4.0L EXR Dh215,900)
Director: Shady Ali
Cast: Boumi Fouad , Mohamed Tharout and Hisham Ismael
Rating: 3/5
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