Wyoming senator who voted against certifying Pennsylvania's 2020 election results bluntly throws support behind DeSantis as the 'leader' of the Republican party

• Politico reporter Burgess Everett asked Sen. Cynthia Lummis if she'd endorse a 2024 Trump campaign.
• Lummis said he was asking the wrong question, calling DeSantis the "leader of the Republican party."

When asked if she'd endorse Donald Trump — the candidate she'd supported through two impeachments — in a new presidential campaign, Sen. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming told Politico she no longer views the former president as the leader of her party.

"I don't think that's the right question," the Republican Senator told Politico reporter Burgess Everett when asked if she'd endorse a 2024 Trump campaign. "I think the question is: Who is the current leader of the Republican Party?"

"Oh, I know who it is," Lummis added. "Ron DeSantis," she said, answering her own question by naming Trump's political rival.

Lummis, who said she would be "holding her nose" while voting for Trump in 2016, was endorsed by the then-president during the 2020 election — support the Wyoming Senator said she was "honored" to receive.

"Right now, it is more important than ever that we follow President Trump's lead and put America First!" Lummis said after accepting Trump's political support. She later went on to vote against certifying the 2020 presidential election results in Pennsylvania and voted to acquit Trump during his second impeachment trial following the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

Lummis' reversal on her support of Trump comes as GOP politicians and media figures have become more vocally critical of the former president, following underwhelming Republican performance during this year's midterms. DeSantis' victory over his Democratic opponent with a nearly 20-percentage point lead has further bolstered his supporters, who see the Florida Governor as a viable conservative alternative to Trump.

When asked for additional details regarding Lummis' endorsement of DeSantis, representatives for the Senator told Insider her "statement stands on its own and we have no further comment."