Now frequenting Iowa, former VP Mike Pence to address Johnson County GOP

Former Vice President Mike Pence, considering a run for the presidency, will make his third Iowa appearance this year when he visits Coralville on March 29 for the Johnson County Republican Party's Reagan Day Dinner.

The party announced on its Facebook page this week that Pence will be the speaker for the annual fundraiser, which has been a popular stop for Republican White House hopefuls in the lead-up to caucus years.

He visited Cedar Rapids last month, making the most traditional of Iowa stops for a Republican candidate: at a Pizza Ranch. He's also scheduled to speak in Des Moines on March 18 alongside Iowa U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst and former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan.

Johnson County Republican Chair Teresa Horton Bumgarner told the Press-Citizen she is excited to welcome the former vice president to Johnson County and looks forward to hearing what he has to tell those in attendance.

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The cost for the dinner is $65, or $100 for those who want to attend a pre-dinner reception for Pence. The deadline to RSVP is March 21 and doors at the Radisson Hotel & Conference Center Coralville's banquet hall will open at 5 p.m.

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Ahead of Iowa’s 2024 presidential caucuses, a new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll shows that Pence is viewed favorably by 66% of Iowa Republicans, trailing former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis but ahead of former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley ― the three other most prominent candidates, or in the case of DeSantis, potential candidates to have visited Iowa this year.

Pence, however, also had the highest unfavorable rating among the four, at 26%, likely the product of Trump's criticism of him for refusing in his role as president of the Senate to try to block certification of the electoral vote for President Joe Biden. He faced questions on the subject during his last Johnson County visit, a November 2021 stop in Iowa City.

Pence in last month's Cedar Rapids visit railed against “radical gender ideology” in public schools, calling for conservatives to double down and take on “a left-wing culture war.”

Haley had declared her candidacy just before his visit and Pence told reporters she "may have more company soon in the race for president.”

This will be the first visit by a major potential 2024 contender to Johnson County this year. Three other prominent Republicans, U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Rick Scott of Florida, visited over the past two years for events with Iowa 1st District U.S Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Ottumwa.

The last time Johnson County voted for a Republican in a general election for president was in 1960, when Richard Nixon defeated John F. Kennedy 10,927 to 10,563 while losing the national election. It has since become solidly Democratic, delivering almost 71% of its 2020 vote to Vice President Joe Biden.

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Some Iowa Republican politicians have made their presidential preferences known, including two whose districts include parts of Johnson County. Trump announced in a visit to Davenport earlier this week that state Reps. Heather Hora and Brad Sherman had both endorsed him.

State Sen. Dawn Driscoll was not included on Trump's list of endorsements and hasn't publicly said who she would support. Nor has Miller-Meeks, who told the Press-Citizen last month that she was not planning on endorsing a candidate yet but would continue to appear at events with them when they visit Iowa.

George Shillcock is the Press-Citizen's local government and development reporter covering Iowa City and Johnson County. He can be reached at (515) 350-6307, GShillcock@press-citizen.com and on Twitter @ShillcockGeorge

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Former VP Mike Pence to speak at Johnson County GOP's Reagan Dinner