Donald Trump to travel to Iowa just after Republican rival Ron DeSantis swings through state

Just a few weeks after severe weather prompted Donald Trump to cancel a planned rally for thousands of people in the heart of Des Moines, the former president will return to Iowa to rub shoulders at a small county breakfast club over plates of bacon and eggs.

His arrival comes just after his main opponent, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, is also scheduled to make multiple appearances in the state.

Trump will speak at a meeting of the Westside Conservative Club in Urbandale June 1, a campaign official told the Des Moines Register. The twice-a-month breakfast club meets at the Machine Shed restaurant where servers dressed in overalls and checkered shirts pour coffee to patrons seated below vintage advertisements and decorative farm implements.

The club is a staple for Republican candidates running for local government all the way up to president. Though the space can hold more than 100 people, it's far smaller and much more intimate than the large rallies Trump typically holds in the state.

More: Will young Iowa Republicans stick with Trump? Millennial, Gen Z leaders size up candidates

It's a signal the former president is leaning in to retail campaigning as he seeks to woo Iowans in his bid for a second term — a practice he largely eschewed in his 2016 campaign.

Later in the day, Trump will film a Fox News town hall, the network announced Thursday. He will also attend a private meeting with pastors, his campaign said.

More: At the Westside Conservative Club, it's hotcakes and hot takes that draw the political right

Visit creates another split-screen moment for Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis

Trump's visit comes the day after DeSantis, his chief rival, is planning to make his first swing through Iowa as a declared presidential candidate.

DeSantis, who announced his candidacy Wednesday night in a Twitter event, is scheduled to hold a formal campaign launch in Des Moines May 30.

On May 31, he will hold events in Sioux City, Council Bluffs, Pella and Cedar Rapids. Details of those events have not yet been released.

Trump is set to arrive in Des Moines Wednesday night, his campaign said, before the June 1 events.

It once again will create a split-screen moment between the pair, who appear to be on a collision course in Iowa as they fight for the support of Iowa Republicans ahead of the GOP's first-in-the-nation caucuses.

More: Iowa Republicans eye a January caucus date: Why the calendar is more complicated this year.

When DeSantis made his first trip to Iowa in March, Trump held a rally in the same city just days later.

And earlier this month, the pair were scheduled to hold dueling rallies on the same day. Trump canceled his outdoor rally amid the threat of tornados, clearing the way for DeSantis to claim the spotlight with a last-minute meet-and-greet at a Des Moines BBQ restaurant.

They pair lead the growing pack of contenders according to polling.

A Real Clear Politics rolling average of Iowa polling puts Trump well ahead with about 48% of the vote compared with DeSantis' 25%. No other candidate currently cracks double digits.

But a bevy of other contenders will also be on hand next week as they arrive for U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst's annual Roast and Ride fundraiser, set for June 3 at the Iowa State Fairgrounds.

So far, radio personality Larry Elder, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, businessman Perry Johnson, former Vice President Mike Pence, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott are all set to speak.

More: See where presidential candidates are campaigning with the Des Moines Register candidate tracker

Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on Twitter at @brianneDMR.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Donald Trump travels to Iowa just after Ron DeSantis campaigns in state