Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis still has an uphill climb against former President Donald Trump in the 2024 GOP primary polls, but his campaign hopes it will get a boost from the official endorsement of popular Iowa GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds.
Reynolds is joining DeSantis for a campaign rally Monday night in Des Moines, Iowa, and a source confirmed to Newsmax on Sunday she will announce her official endorsement for her long-time gubernatorial ally.
The source hailed the "extremely rare" endorsement from an Iowa governor for a GOP primary candidate – as they historically remained neutral. Also, the coming endorsement is a bold break from a popular former president like Trump – who had endorsed her before – and will show DeSantis' "blocking-and-tackling" focus in Iowa will begin to bring results for DeSantis' campaign, the source added.
The endorsement comes as former South Carolina GOP Gov. Nikki Haley has made some in-roads in polling, pulling up alongside DeSantis as runners-up behind Trump.
The Iowa Caucuses are the first in the nation once again for the 2024 Republican presidential primary cycle, and Reynolds draws a higher favorability rating among Iowa Republicans than any of the presidential candidates (81%), NBC News reported.
DeSantis' campaign has focused its efforts on Iowa, having taken the governor to 87 of the 99 counties in the state, en route to the "full Grassley" goal of following the lead of Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, in hitting every county in the state.
Reynolds has previously sought to remain neutral in the GOP presidential primary in the state in order to be welcoming host for all of the candidates.
"If I weigh in, I don't know if they'll feel all that welcome," Reynolds told NBC News earlier this year.
Reynolds had previously been bandied about being a potential vice presidential running mate, but Trump has been critical of the governor, with his campaign arguing Reynold's endorsement "will not make any difference in this race."
"I love Iowa, protected & expanded Ethanol, got 28 Billion Dollars from China for our great Farmers, ended the Estate (Death!) Tax on farms, made the best TRADE deals in history (USMCA, China, & many more), introduced the World to our FARMERS, & kept Iowa's 'First in the Nation' status," Trump wrote in a July Truth Social post. "I opened up the Governor position for Kim Reynolds, & when she fell behind, I ENDORSED her, did big Rallies, & she won. Now, she wants to remain 'NEUTRAL.' I don't invite her to events! DeSanctus down 45 points!"
Reynolds' alliance with DeSantis could make her a favorite to be a potential VP candidate if DeSantis were to make strides in Iowa to slingshot back into the 2024 GOP primary race.
Related Stories:
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.