Does Ron DeSantis Wear High Heels? A Conspiracy Theory Now Spread By Donald Trump Explained

Presidential candidate Ron DeSantis hasn't been doing all that well in the polls compared to his rival Donald Trump, and according to jokes that have followed to the Florida governor for roughly a year, he may be seeking a "boost" in the form of high-heeled shoes.

This recently caught the attention of former President Trump, who reposted a popular meme of DeSantis supposedly wearing high-heeled boots on a recent clip with Bill Maher, meaning there's a good chance Trump's next lowbrow line of attack will involve mocking DeSantis' footwear. Here's how DeSantis' shoes entered the national Republican presidential conversation.

Why Do People Think Ron DeSantis Is Wearing High Heels?

As Ron DeSantis positioned himself for a Presidential run late last year, keen-eyed spectators noticed he started to wear boots typical of a midwestern rancher rather than a Florida politician. One could think that the fashion choice was intended to appeal to a broader, working-class Republican electorate, but in February, Democratic oppo researcher Pat Dennis was the first to proffer another explanation: the boots, with their elevated heels are an intentional choice DeSantis made to look taller.

Ron DeSantis' height isn't exactly common knowledge, as a variety of sources have placed him between 5'7" and 5'11." Whatever the case, he is definitely shorter than Trump, and depending on his actual height, he may be shorter than any President since the 1800s. One could imagine why he wants to appear taller, especially in a race that, headed by Trump, will definitely have a heavy emphasis on optics.

The idea that DeSantis was intentionally wearing "heels" to boost his height picked up steam over the course of the year, as posts suggesting DeSantis was juicing his appearance became increasingly commonplace over the following months.

How Did Donald Trump Catch Wind Of The Rumor?

The idea that DeSantis wore "heels" gained the most traction following the governor's September 30th appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher. After the appearance, Redditor /u/beastmodeChadF went viral with a post on /r/ThereWasAnAttempt that outlined where DeSantis's feet could be in his (frankly, comically large) boots.

The day after the post hit Reddit, TikToker Spamellina posted a clip from the interview with the text reading, "Tell me he's not wearing hidden heels." It appears this was the TikTok Trump screengrabbed to make his meme on October 9th.

Trump was mildly criticized for mocking DeSantis' footwear choice on Truth Social rather than discussing the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, but it's unlikely those criticisms will significantly hurt him in the polls, as Trump currently holds a 43-point lead over DeSantis.

For more information, check out Ron DeSantis high heels conspiracy on Know Your Meme.