Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis campaigned in Iowa over the weekend and attended the Cy-Hawk rivalry game with Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds.
Photos from the game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Iowa State Cyclones showed DeSantis and Reynolds sitting together about half an hour before kickoff and after the game had kicked off. The pair sitting at the high-profile event together comes as Reynolds has yet to publicly endorse a Republican presidential candidate.
The Hawkeyes won 20-13.
Great time at the Iowa-Iowa State game today! #CyHawk 🏈🏈🏈🏈 pic.twitter.com/euxjQMY5wK
— Never Back Down (@NvrBackDown24) September 10, 2023
Had a great time at the Cy-Hawk game with Gov. @KimReynoldsIA!
Iowa is lucky to have such a strong governor who never backs down from doing what’s right. pic.twitter.com/50YP0QiDps
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) September 10, 2023
Former President Donald Trump also attended the game, sitting in a box seat.
Influential Iowa conservative leader Bob Vander Plaats commented on one video that showed a mix of cheers and boos from the crowd, writing, “The polls aren’t even close to reality on [the] ground.”
The polls aren’t even close to reality on ground. https://t.co/iCoejK9mOX
— Bob Vander Plaats (@bobvanderplaats) September 9, 2023
Vander Plaats has repeatedly made this point so far during the 2024 campaign cycle as polls show Trump leading DeSantis in the state by roughly 20 points while the other candidates remain in the single digits.
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Both Trump and DeSantis attended various events in Iowa and drew large crowds and received strong support from those at the events.
President @realDonaldTrump flipping burgers at Iowa State University! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/hUjBVEFeoW
— Margo Martin (@margommartin) September 9, 2023
Another example: pic.twitter.com/ycPaCNwIIl
— John Hasson (@SonofHas) September 10, 2023
Reynolds — who is the most powerful and influential Republican in Iowa — initially said that she was not planning on making an endorsement before the Iowa caucuses, but later appeared to change her mind when she said she would no longer rule it out.
Fox News host Shannon Bream noted in an interview with Reynolds that her endorsement in the state is viewed as a “game changer” among the Republican presidential candidates.
Bream then highlighted recent swipes Trump appeared to make against Reynolds.
“I opened up the Governor position for Kim Reynolds, & when she fell behind, I ENDORSED her, did big Rallies, & she won,” Trump wrote on Truth Social back in early July. “Now, she wants to remain ‘NEUTRAL.’ I don’t invite her to events!”
Reynolds responded to the criticism from the former president during a CNN interview several weeks later.
“It’s actually Iowans who made the decision to elect me in a really tough year,” she said. “2018 was not a good year for Republicans. I squeaked by.”
DeSantis defended Reynolds, calling Trump’s criticism of her “totally out of bounds.”
NBC News reported on Friday that numerous top Trump allies have sounded the alarm in recent weeks about the Trump Campaign’s efforts in Iowa, saying that the operation in the state was lagging behind where they believe it should be.
Donald Trump Jr. responded to the report by saying in statement: “As usual, this is 100% fake news, in what is likely the last breath from the dying Ron DeSanctimonious campaign.”