Ron DeSantis is far behind Donald Trump in recent polls of Hawkeye State Republicans, but he expects attrition in the Republican field to help him.
"I think you are going to see the field narrow because it's just the reality. I mean, this is a tough thing. You either have a path or you don't, so I do think you'll see that. That'll be natural." DeSantis said at a tour stop sponsored by the DeSantis-aligned Never Back Down super PAC.
The remarks in Ankeny follow the DeSantis campaign spotlighting a Bloomberg report that Trump's campaign will focus resources in Iowa after all, including senior advisor Chris LaCivita reportedly "relocating temporarily to Iowa," $2.4 million of Trump ad buys in the state, and a foray by the former President into the state Saturday.
DeSantis has presented Iowa as his best shot against Donald Trump, telling reporters during a press conference Tuesday that opponents should "collapse" behind him so that anti-Trump votes weren't split among candidates.
"Here's what we know. We know that the only two candidates that have a chance to win the Iowa caucus are myself and Donald Trump. That's it," DeSantis said.
A survey of 400 Hawkeye State Republicans from the Citizen Awareness Project, conducted by Public Opinion Strategies on Sept. 28 and 29, shows that "Iowa caucus-goers, especially those who watched, say Ron DeSantis won this week's GOP debate."
DeSantis, per the polling memo, is viewed as the "strongest on border security" and "best able to defeat Donald Trump" by more than 40% of likely caucus goers.
A CBS News survey released last week showed DeSantis above 20% in the state, though 30 points behind Trump.
DeSantis' campaign has depicted its Iowa effort as a "drive toward victory." To that end, he is also moving a third of his staff to the state, in an effort spokesperson Carly Atchison calls "pedal to the metal."
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