The more deaths you're responsible for, the more popular you are with the current Republican Party.
Statewide death rates vary more based on (A) the number of poor people living in cramped housing and (B) how friendly the climate is to spending time outdoors. Even after you account for that, it's hard to rate DeSantis's handling particularly poorly unless you're more focused on theatrics than results:
Sure, if you want a governor who put on a big show about how seriously they were taking the pandemic, a Newsom or a Cuomo is better. But Florida doesn't appear to be any worse off for DeSantis's handling.
