DES MOINES, Iowa — Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley pushed across ice-cold Iowa Saturday to find voters open to an alternative to former President Donald Trump with just two days before the state’s caucuses open the Republican primary calendar.
Trump, the heavy front-runner in Monday’s caucuses, opted for “tele-rallies” after canceling larger in-person events due to a blizzard blanketing much of the state, but he remained confident as he looks for a big victory to blunt the potential rise of any rival.
Shortly after arriving in Des Moines, Trump held a livestreamed town hall-style event hosted by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, one his top Iowa backers. “It’s nasty out there,” he said of Iowa’s icy conditions. He confessed to some worry that weather could dampen turnout Monday but said his supporters will “walk over glass” to support him.
Perhaps more important than the margin of Trump’s expected victory is whether either of his remaining top rivals can claim a clear second-place finish and gain momentum as the race moves forward to New Hampshire and other states.
“You’re going to pack so much more punch on Monday night than in any other election you’ll ever be able to participate in,” the Florida governor told about 60 voters at his first event in Council Bluffs, Iowa, on the western edge of the state.
DeSantis is hoping for more voters like Michael Durham, a former Trump supporter who plans to caucus for him Monday night.
“He’s just kind of no nonsense,” said Durham, a 47-year-old from Council Bluffs. Durham praised DeSantis for opening Florida schools during the COVID-19 pandemic and challenging federal power. “He doesn’t make any apologies for the way he thinks.”
Other Iowans showed why DeSantis and Haley still have work to do in their respective final pushes.
Courtney Raines, a teacher, came to hear Haley on Saturday morning and planned to see DeSantis later in the day. “I’d like to know how she’s going to handle the border crisis and mitigate the racial divide,” said Raines, who expressed concern about divisions in American society.
Americans for Prosperity, the political arm of the conservative Koch Brothers’ network, canvassed the state through the winter storm on Haley’s behalf.
Patti Parlee, a 65-year-old accountant from Urbandale, was among the Iowans visited at home Saturday by AFP. But Parlee said she is choosing between Trump and DeSantis and likely won’t decide until Monday night, when she will hear the two candidates’ representatives make a pitch at her caucus site.
