Trump to visit Iowa State Fair with Florida Republicans who endorsed him over Ron DeSantis

Former President Donald Trump will visit the Iowa State Fair Saturday with a bevy of congressional endorsers in tow — not high-profile Iowans, but nine Florida Republicans who have backed him over his chief rival and fellow Floridian, Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Trump's campaign confirmed to the Des Moines Register that Republican U.S. Reps. Gus Bilirakis, Byron Donalds, Matt Gaetz, Carlos Gimenez, Brian Mast, Cory Mills, Anna Paulina Luna, Greg Steube and Mike Waltz will all be traveling with Trump to the Iowa State Fair and will be with him through the day.

Each of them has endorsed Trump over DeSantis, a former member of Congress, who will also be at the fair Saturday.

It's the latest instance of Trump's campaign timing his travels to Iowa to pull the attention of media and attendees away from DeSantis and toward their candidate.

Other details of Trump's visit to the fairgrounds, scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, remain scant. But he will visit on his own terms — as the only Republican candidate, besides Chris Christie, who won't participate in either the Des Moines Register's Political Soapbox or the "fair-side chat" series with Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds.

Trump has passed on several events on the Iowa caucus circuit thus far this cycle, including U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst's "Roast and Ride" and The Family Leader's annual summit, but he did attend the Iowa GOP's annual Lincoln Dinner. Several of his recent visits have focused on smaller stops, meeting campaign volunteers and filming Fox News town halls.

It is unclear whether Trump's presence, which comes with Secret Service and security measures, will have a significant impact on the fair's operations and crowd sizes on an expected high-traffic Saturday. A spokesperson for the Iowa State Fair was not immediately available for comment Tuesday evening.

In 2015, Trump caused a stir at the fairgrounds by landing his helicopter nearby and offering rides to children.

Trump's visit to the state fair, a staple for those courting support in the Iowa caucuses, comes as he navigates tenuous relationships in Iowa and ongoing legal battles on the east coast.

He has criticized Reynolds, popular among Iowa Republicans for staying neutral in the caucuses. Reynolds invited all GOP hopefuls, including Trump, to sit down with her during the fair. All Republican candidates visiting the fair except for the former president accepted the offer.

Meanwhile, he continues to fight ongoing court cases in Washington, New York and Florida involving allegations of a hush money payment, mishandling of classified documents and an attempted theft of the 2020 presidential election.

A fourth case in Georgia involving alleged election interference, also relating to the 2020 race, is expected to be made official in the coming weeks.

Trump, who continues to dismiss the charges leveled against him as politically motivated and baseless, remains the frontrunner in both Iowa and nationally.

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.

Galen Bacharier covers politics for the Register. Reach him at gbacharier@registermedia.com or (573) 219-7440, and follow him on Twitter @galenbacharier.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Trump to visit Iowa State Fair with Florida congressional endorsers