EXCLUSIVE — Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley‘s 2024 presidential campaign released a new ad in Iowa Sunday, touting her staggering lead over President Joe Biden with just weeks until the state’s Republican caucuses.
The 30-second spot highlights various media reports acknowledging Haley’s advantage over the president in head-to-head matchups, defeating Biden by more than both the Republican primary front runner former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL).
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Titled “Strong and Proud,” the new Haley ad debuted in the Hawkeye State on broadcast, cable, and digital platforms.
In a new Wall Street Journal poll, Haley beat Biden in a head-to-head 2024 matchup by an overwhelming 17 points, 51% to 34%. Trump also defeated Biden, but by only four points, 47% to 43%. DeSantis only managed to tie Biden at 45% each.
“It’s no secret Democrats are rooting for Donald Trump or Ron DeSantis in the Republican presidential race,” said Haley campaign spokeswoman Olivia Perez Cubas. “After all, Trump and DeSantis barely beat Biden or lose to him, while Nikki Haley trounces Biden in the general election. Voters are rallying to Nikki because they know she is a winner.”
In the latest Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa Poll, Trump maintained his strong lead over the primary field, with 51% support among likely Republican caucusgoers. DeSantis, whose campaign has spent the last few months focused on Iowa, saw 19% in the survey, just three points above Haley’s 16%.
Despite Trump’s strong lead, only about half of likely Republican caucusgoers, 49%, said their minds are made up as to who they’re supporting. On the other hand, 46% said they could be convinced to support another candidate. In the poll’s signature “footprint” metric, which accounts for those who say a candidate is their first or second choice and whether they are actively considering them, the race looks much closer with Trump at 76%, DeSantis at 67%, and Haley at 52%.
As the days and weeks until the Iowa caucuses wind down, candidates are making their final bids to win Republican voters in the state.
While strategists and political scientists have said both Trump and DeSantis are dependent on first-place finishes by significant margins, due to Haley’s positioning in New Hampshire and South Carolina, she stands to benefit potentially from finishing either second or third in the caucuses.
During Haley’s latest push in the state, her campaign has emphasized not only her upward polling trend in the primary field but her stature against Biden in a potential 2024 matchup.
Haley’s Iowa effort is also aided by the recent endorsement of billionaire Charles Koch-tied Americans for Prosperity Action, an expansive grassroots organization already mobilized in Iowa and other early nominating states. The network of activists quickly began organizing for Haley following the endorsement, with AFP revealing it’s reached more than 300,000 Iowa voters in the weeks since.
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The former U.N. ambassador also made a last-minute Iowa hire in communications adviser Pat Garrett, who previously worked for both Gov. Kim Reynolds (R-IA) and Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird. Reynolds notably endorsed DeSantis, while Bird has given Trump her support. The late addition to Haley’s team will lead the campaign’s media effort in Iowa in the crucial last push ahead of the caucuses.
The Iowa caucuses will take place Jan. 15.
