It’s an odd time in the primary. Nothing feels quite right. There are lots of candidates, as happened in 2015, and it is exciting to see what a deep bench of good choices primary voters have available. However, all along the one to watch has been Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Is he the one who can knock off Donald Trump and earn the Republican Party nomination?

DeSantis was doing better in the polls before he officially entered the race than now that he is a candidate. It’s like the idea of his candidacy and a one-on-one match-up between Trump and DeSantis was more exciting than the reality has turned out to be. Some big dollar donors are starting to show some frustration that DeSantis, so far, has been unable to break through Trump’s substantial lead in polls.

Whether we trust polls to be accurate gauges of the pulse of voters is a legitimate question, given how wildly wrong polls have been in recent elections. But, they do continue to provide a baseline for what voters are thinking at the time they are polled. As the expression goes, it’s a snapshot in time. Is it time to start looking around for an alternative to do the heavy lifting of stopping Trump?

According to the New York Times, Rupert Murdoch’s support of DeSantis is waning. The tone at Fox News Channel has taken a turn, too, in its coverage of DeSantis. Prior to entering the primary, DeSantis was in friendly territory and enjoyed non-combative interviews. That is beginning to change. To be clear, there is still plenty of support for Trump from some show hosts and contributors. FNC hired Kellyanne Conway as a contributor, for example. Kayleigh McEnany was hired by FNC and she has done a pretty good job in remaining above the fray. But, others on-air are clearly supporting Trump.

For example, the NYT article notes recent interviews with Will Cain and Maria Bartiromo. Both have questioned DeSantis about his campaign and his inability to move up in polls. Bartiromo is a Trump supporter. Will Cain seems to go back and forth on his support, though lately he seems to be in the Trump camp. His co-hosts on the weekend edition of Fox and Friends are so pro-Trump it is difficult for viewers who are moving toward a candidate other than Trump to watch. The primetime hosts of the nighttime opinion shows all seem to favor Trump. Sean Hannity is having a town hall with Trump in Iowa on July 18.

Perhaps the shine is off on a DeSantis candidacy.

But taken together, the signs of skepticism from previously friendly conservative megaphones suggest that Mr. Murdoch’s media empire might now be reassessing him as the early shine comes off his campaign.

Even if Mr. Murdoch’s outlets as a whole are less determinative of outcomes in Republican politics than they once were, they remain influential, and G.O.P. candidates and major party donors still pay close attention to their coverage.

Whether Mr. Murdoch wants to see Mr. DeSantis as the nominee is unclear. Some of Mr. DeSantis’s moves — like his ongoing punitive battle with Disney — are unlikely to have pleased the business-minded Mr. Murdoch, who nearly a decade ago called for federal officials to make immigration reform a priority.

Generally speaking, Trump no longer has the friendly relationship with Fox that he once had. Trump frequently criticizes the network for what he perceives as being too supportive of DeSantis. “They are desperately pushing DeSanctimonious who, regardless, is dropping like a rock.” And he has taken shots at those who work for other Murdoch outlets, such as writer Salena Zito, who did an interview with DeSantis in his hometown in Dunedin, Florida. Trump slammed it as a puff piece. Zito writes for the NY Post, previously one of Trump’s favorite papers.

Trump’s favorite line that DeSantis is “dropping like a rock” isn’t true. The problem is that he isn’t moving in the polls at all. He’s remained stagnant since he entered the race. Trump is still ahead by up to 30 points in some polls. By now his supporters hoped he would have made more headway in pushing down Trump. Is Governor Glenn Youngkin moving into the Flavor of the Month territory?

In either case, if DeSantis is unable to climb out of his hole, Murdoch might look elsewhere for a viable challenger to Trump. Glenn Youngkin, the Republican governor of Virginia, has been floated as such a prospect, with The New York Times reporting that Murdoch has privately expressed a desire for Youngkin to enter the race (Murdoch did not respond to a request for comment from The Times). Last month, the New York Post’s editorial board, a Murdoch outfit that hailed DeSantis as the GOP’s future as recently as November, shared an excerpt from an op-ed published by The Hill that named Youngkin as a potential dark horse contender in the event that Trump and DeSantis “bludgeon each other into political oblivion.” As of May, Youngkin was said to be reconsidering a 2024 bid.

Youngkin has been mentioned as a presidential candidate all along, almost from the time he was elected in Virginia. He is an impressive rookie politician, that is evident when he is interviewed. He effectively articulates Republican positions and that is sorely needed among Republican candidates. He breaks down policy and legislation into bite-size pieces that non-political junkies understand. That’s important.

However, so far Youngkin is a no in entering the race. What he is doing is very important for the 2024 presidential election. He is launching a program in Virginia to encourage Republicans to vote absentee by mail or early in-person ahead of his state’s midterm elections this year. This kind of thinking is necessary in order to be competitive with Democrats in elections. Republicans have to play their game. Republicans typically prefer to wait until election day and vote in-person. And Republicans do not favor ballot harvesting. All that has to change in order for Republicans to win elections. Democrats have changed the rules and Republicans have to keep up. Youngkin is launching his program to educate voters about this new reality. Hopefully he will be able to use the Virginia program as a template nationwide for the 2024 presidential election, too. It’s a new way of thinking for Republican voters, especially primary voters, but it is necessary. Otherwise, Republicans surrender to Democrats for the foreseeable future.

Look for Youngkin’s name to continue to be discussed as a national candidate. He has a bright future in politics, if he wants it. He may not run in 2024 but he will be an automatic frontrunner in 2028 if he continues on this path.