Des Moines, Iowa – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is appearing on air hours before the state's caucuses start for the 2024 Republican presidential nominating calendar in a bid to build expectations for former President Trump.
“I don't think it's going to be good for President Trump if he doesn't get over 50,” Reynolds said in an interview Monday morning. did. Fox News' “Fox & Friends.”
The popular Iowa governor is the top surrogate in the Hawkeye State for Trump's rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is vying for second place in Iowa after the president by a wide margin. She is running against Nikki Haley, a former ambassador to the United Nations and former governor of South Carolina. He is aiming to run for the White House for a third consecutive year and is the front-runner for the Republican nomination.
It's not just Reynolds.
What's in store for Trump, DeSantis and Haley in the Iowa caucuses?
Republican presidential candidate former President Trump speaks at a rally at Simpson College on Sunday, January 14, 2024 in Indiola, Iowa. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
DeSantis campaign manager James Usmayer appeared on Fox News' “America's Newsroom” on Sunday and said, “We have high expectations for Mr. Trump…He has to perform. If Mr. If less than half of the votes are cast, there will be more people voting against Trump than voting for him.” I think that will lead to future destruction. ”
What the final polls before Monday's Iowa Republican presidential caucuses show
Haley said in an interview on the same show that people will be paying attention to whether President Trump's approval rating is “below 50%.”
Additionally, Haley's campaign highlighted a video Monday morning of Trump touting his lead by as much as 60 points in some polls.
Republican presidential candidate, former United Nations Ambassador and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley holds up her caucus pledge card during a campaign event at Jethros Barbecue on Sunday, January 14, 2024 in Ames, Iowa. . (AP Photo/Carolyn Custer)
President Trump is confident he will do “very well” in Monday night's Iowa caucuses.
But the former president is not prepared to predict whether he will exceed 50%.
As he left his hotel in Des Moines on Sunday, Trump was asked by Fox News' James Levinson if he could win more than 50% of the vote in the caucuses.
Trump responded, “I don't know, but I think we're doing very well.” The former president maintains a huge double-digit lead in the latest Iowa polls and national polls for the Republican presidential nomination.
Haley appears to be doing well at Iowa State despite media expectations
Trump made history last year as the first former or current president to be indicted for a crime, but the four indictments, including charges that he tried to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss, are among Republican voters. It only increased Trump's support.
Trump has received more than 50% support in Iowa in numerous polls conducted over the past month. Additionally, the final Des Moines Register/Mediacom/NBC News poll of Republican candidates released Saturday night showed him with a 48% approval rating. In the new poll, Haley and DeSantis had 20% and 16%, respectively.
Republican presidential candidate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (right) takes the microphone after being introduced at an event in West Des Moines, Iowa, Saturday, January 13, 2024. On Saturday, January 13, 2024, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds was also on stage and DeSantis' wife, Casey DeSantis. (AP Photo/Pablo Martínez Monsivay)
The high-profile poll, conducted by longtime pollster Ann Selzer, has a reputation for accuracy in past Republican presidential caucuses and is considered by many to be the gold standard for polling in Iowa. There is.
But President Trump and his campaign are taking aim at the high expectations he faces in Iowa.
Will Ron DeSantis' big bet on Iowa pay off?
“No one has won the Iowa caucuses by more than 12 percentage points,” Chris Lacivita, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, told Fox News Digital on Saturday. I think the polls are a little rich.
“It looks like there's about a 50% chance,” Trump told reporters on Sunday.
“I think they're doing it to have high expectations. So if they end up with 49%, that's about 25 points more than the other players got. You could say he was a failure.You could say it was a failure.''A failure. You know fake news,” he claimed.
But despite his best efforts, many analysts and pundits will be watching to see how Trump ends.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
David Kochel, a longtime Republican strategist and veteran of numerous Republican presidential campaigns and statewide races in Iowa, told Fox News, “There are two campaigns in Iowa right now. It's being done,” he said.
“One is Trump vs. his expectations, and the other is Haley vs. DeSantis, who gets the right to go one-on-one with Trump,” said Kochel, who remains neutral in the Republican presidential caucus. It pointed out.
Get the latest on the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more with Fox News Digital's Election Hub.
