Hawkeye State Republicans are about to get an eyeful of pro-Ron DeSantis content.
Starting Monday, July 31, the pro-DeSantis Never Back Down PAC will buy TV time in Iowa for the first time in a month.
The ad buy comes just days after the committee will stage a bus tour in the state for DeSantis. That tour begins Thursday morning when the candidate touches down in Des Moines. The tour will go 154 miles with three stops over 12 hours in the southern part of the Hawkeye State.
A meet-and-greet will get underway at noon at a bar and grill in Chariton. He’ll then head to a town hall at an Osceola distillery to the west and swing 80 miles east where the tour wraps for another meet-and-greet at an Oskaloosa coffee shop. On Friday, DeSantis will appear at the sold-out Iowa GOP Lincoln Dinner in Des Moines.
The ad buy comes as polling shows DeSantis’ second place standing is under siege.
A Fox Business survey released on Sunday reveals just 5 points separate the Florida Governor and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina.
DeSantis has 16% support, with Scott at 11%.
Both contenders are far behind Donald Trump, who is 46%.
The rest of the field is in single digits: Vivek Ramaswamy at 6%, Nikki Haley at 5%, Mike Pence at 4%, Chris Christie and Doug Burgum at 3% each, and Asa Hutchinson and Francis Suarez both at 1%.
This survey is the second in the last few days to show a Scott surge.
A recent Coefficient Poll of Iowa shows DeSantis has 16% support, with Scott at 10%. Again, Trump is at 46%.
The polling comes in the wake of a DeSantis campaign memo that says Scott is a target for the foreseeable future, a seeming tacit admission that the South Carolina Senator’s surge is at the Governor’s expense.
“While Tim Scott has earned a serious look at this stage, his bio is lacking the fight that our electorate is looking for in the next President,” the memo asserts. “We expect Tim Scott to receive appropriate scrutiny in the weeks ahead.”
The Race to the White House polling average of Iowa shows Trump ahead of DeSantis, 45% to 18%, with Scott at 9%.
___
Anne Geggis of Florida Politics contributed to this report.
The post Ron DeSantis PAC buys Iowa TV time appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..