DeSantis has not yet decided whether to run for president in 2028

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has not yet made a final decision on whether to run for president again in 2028. That is according to two people familiar with his thinking.

The sources stressed that DeSantis is still watching the political environment to see whether he will perform well, whether there is a lane for him to break through, and whether he has something to offer the Republican Party and the country.

ABC News has reached out to DeSantis' office for comment on his plans.

In the days leading up to and after the midterms, DeSantis has ramped up his media appearances, reflecting on what went wrong for the Republican Party in this year's cycle.

The day after the midterm elections, DeSantis held a press conference where he described Tuesday's elections as a 'meteor strike,' arguing that even a 'wave' fails to capture the scale of the Republican losses.

At the press conference he said: 'Last night, we witnessed, to call it a wave, I don't think would be fully accurate. It's the political equivalent of a meteor strike that went all around the United States, blue states, red states, everything in between, and the one state that was able to hold the line and withstand that is right here in the free state of Florida.'

DeSantis did not mince his words about the midterm election results for Republicans across the country, calling it 'close to an extinction-level event' for the party.

Offering his analysis of what went wrong for Republicans, he said there was a lack of positive messages from candidates to run on and messaging that did not land with voters.

Prior to the midterm elections, DeSantis said in an interview that Republicans were 'gaslighting' voters on gas prices. In the interview with Stephen A. Smith that aired on Monday, he said gas is higher, it hurts working-class people, and it is higher because of the Iran war.

In his words, some Republicans are saying not to worry about gas, that it is no big deal. But the fact is that gas is higher and it hurts people. If you cannot admit that to voters, they are not going to listen to you on other things.

DeSantis mounted an unsuccessful presidential bid in 2024, running against Donald Trump and ultimately dropping out of the race right before the New Hampshire primary. He also finished a distant second behind Trump in the Iowa caucuses.

His 2024 campaign was marred by political infighting that drew national attention and was complicated by overspending despite receiving immense donor support.

A person familiar with DeSantis' thinking said he has taken lessons from his presidential campaign, including the need to do more media and that he cannot wait too long to enter the presidential race.

DeSantis' term as Florida governor ends in January.