Gov. Kim Reynolds (R-IA) praised Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R-FL) presidential campaigning efforts in Iowa, the first state for candidates to face the scrutiny of voters.
“I know that he is doing the 99 county tour and he’s showing up in rural Iowa,” Reynolds told Fox News at the Iowa State Fair on Thursday while withholding an endorsement of DeSantis. “He’s talking to voters; he’s listening to voters. He’s talking about his vision, and that’s a really good thing to do.”
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Multiple GOP candidates are set to visit or have already stopped at the Iowa State Fair, often a tradition for presidential hopefuls as campaigning for the 2024 Iowa caucuses heats up.
“Rick Santorum did it. He was successful in that caucus,” Reynolds said, pointing to the former Republican Pennsylvania senator’s 2016 presidential bid in which he became the first candidate to campaign in all 99 Iowa counties.
“So it matters because Iowans will show up and they want to talk to the candidate who wants to ask the questions,” Reynolds said. “And so it’s a great thing to do.”
This year, Reynolds’s team is putting on “Fairside Chats,” giving Republican candidates a chance to speak publicly starting Thursday and concluding on Aug. 18. All campaigns were invited to attend, and DeSantis will chat with Reynolds on Saturday. Former President Donald Trump is not on the list.
Trump attacked Reynolds on Truth Social last month, claiming he opened doors for her as governor after endorsing her, implying the Iowa Republican should support his presidency.
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Some Republican candidates came to Reynolds’s defense and condemned Trump’s comments, such as former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, and DeSantis.
The pair have spent much time together since the launch of his campaign, and DeSantis said in a recent interview that he would consider Reynolds as a potential vice presidential pick. Reynolds has appeared uninterested in the possibility of being vice president, telling Fox News shortly after DeSantis’s comments that she’s “busy” fulfilling her duties as governor of Iowa.
