Trump wins Iowa caucus: What does it mean for the DeSantis campaign?

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Former President Donald Trump is projected to win the 2024 Iowa caucus, NBC News and the Associated Press project.

As expected, Trump was the clear frontrunner in the contest, leaving Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in a race for second place. As of this report, it is too close to call.

In a post on X, DeSantis’ press secretary, Bryan Griffin, said the decision to declare Trump the winner shortly after the caucuses began was “extremely disrespectful to the voters.”

Five things to watch during the Iowa GOP caucuses

After months of campaigning, Republican presidential candidates faced their first test of the 2024 primary season: the Iowa caucuses. Voters across the state descended on their local caucus sites Monday amid frigid temperatures. Forecasters warned it could be the coldest Iowa caucus date on record.

The winner of the state’s caucuses is expected to get a boost heading into New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary next week, but the results don’t always spell success for the rest of the campaign season. Still, Haley and DeSantis are hoping for a strong showing against former President Donald Trump, the presumed front-runner.

Ahead of the caucuses, the latest NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll showed Trump with a nearly 30-point lead over the other candidates. His supporters appeared to be the most enthusiastic, which could bolster turnout despite the brutal weather conditions. Aides for multiple campaigns and longtime Iowa political observers suggested the weather could sharply depress turnout.

The poll indicated Haley and DeSantis have near-equal support, though Haley has a slight lead. DeSantis faces pressure to build momentum off a potential second-place showing and hopes to overcome the various hiccups that have loomed over his campaign.

DeSantis lost footing in the polls as Republican voters rallied around Trump in the wake of his criminal indictments. In a campaign that has been overshadowed by technical glitches, staffing shake-ups and footwear-focused social media theories, DeSantis’ path to the presidency is not quite clear.

The DeSantis campaign and its allies are betting big on Iowa, having spent tens of millions on television ads, just shy of Haley’s total. Rumors of DeSantis dropping out of the race circulated ahead of the caucus, leaving some to wonder if Iowa could be his first and final primary contest.

“The question is really does DeSantis drop out? I think that’s the only big question that’s going to be answered,” Andrew Smith, director of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, told The Hill. “I don’t think he’s going to win, but if he finishes a distant third, he’s going to drop out. I mean, he has nowhere to go after that.”

Last month, the pro-DeSantis Never Back Down PAC pulled ad buys from both Iowa and New Hampshire. A DeSantis spokesperson insisted that the governor will continue on the campaign trail regardless of his showing in Iowa.

DeSantis super PAC cancels TV ads in Iowa, New Hampshire

“It’s like an NFL season,” David Polyansky, deputy campaign manager for DeSantis, told The Hill. “You have game after game. Iowa is the first game. It deservedly gets all of the attention, because it’s the first one on the calendar, but on that night, we’re all going to pick up and fly out of here and go campaign elsewhere.”

DeSantis is scheduled to appear at a CNN town hall on Tuesday ahead of the next primary contest in New Hampshire on January 23.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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