The 2024 Republican presidential race played out in close quarters Saturday at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, as former President Donald Trump and his top-polling rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, joined the crowd of thousands of potential caucus goers.
The Iowa State Fair in Des Moines has been a quintessential stop on the presidential campaign trail since the Democratic Party moved the state to the first position in its nominating calendar in 1972 and Republicans made the same shift four years later.
Trump and DeSantis both skipped one state fair mainstay – making their pitches to crowds gathered around The Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox. But DeSantis, like most other GOP contenders, participated in a one-on-one “fair-side chat” with Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds. Trump, who has repeatedly questioned Reynolds’ neutrality in the race and accused the popular governor of cozying up to DeSantis, skipped the chat with her. But later Saturday, Trump walked back his previous criticism of Reynolds, adding that he likes her “very much.”
Trump was met with cheers as he mingled with allies and supporters. The former president touted a “record crowd” at the fair while largely evading questions about his legal troubles.
DeSantis, meanwhile, saw praise and hecklers as he walked through the fairgrounds, which he described as “a sign of strength.”
“They know, that we will beat Biden and that we will be able to turn this country around, and they do not want that,” DeSantis told CNN. When asked if he could bring people who don’t like him over to his side, DeSantis added that “average Americans are open to a new direction.”
The former president traveled to Iowa with an entourage largely designed to troll DeSantis. It’s made up of members of Congress from Florida who have endorsed Trump over their state’s governor: Reps. Gus Bilirakis, Byron Donalds, Matt Gaetz, Carlos Gimenez, Brian Mast, Cory Mills, Anna Paulina Luna, Greg Steube and Mike Waltz.
