Donald Trump’s indictments fueling fire among Iowa Republicans heading into 2024
Rachel Schilke
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Republican voters in Iowa are rallying behind former President Donald Trump, with county GOP leaders saying the indictments against him are fueling the party’s fire heading into the 2024 election.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to both state and federal indictments, the former out of Manhattan and the latter out of Miami. The news of the former president’s criminal charges sparked outrage among Republicans.
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Some GOP members saw the indictments as a warning sign to move away from Trump in 2024, while others, particularly in red Iowa counties, are using this as a rallying cry to throw support behind the former president in the primary.
Dallas County Republican Party Chairwoman Kelley Koch said the indictments opened the floodgates from the “drip, drip, drip” that built up over time, citing the Russia-Trump investigations, his two impeachments, and other controversies during Trump’s administration.
Iowans “were not even interested” in the initial news of the Manhattan indictment, she said. Trump was charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records during the 2016 campaign in April.
“This last set of indictments, federal, it was almost like someone poured diesel fuel on a smoldering fire,” Koch said. “People started to look at what’s happening to President Trump and they are asking themselves, ‘Is that fair? Is it fair that they’re attacking him?'”
Koch said constituents are frequently discussing the “overwhelming exposure” of a two-tiered justice system, a common phrase used by Republicans across the country and on Capitol Hill.
“‘Rules for thee but not for me’ — That is a phrase that I hear as chair probably four times a week,” Koch added.
In Iowa and across the U.S., the news of the indictments sparked support for the former president in both polling and donations. His 2024 presidential campaign hauled in $6.6 million “and counting” in the days following the federal criminal charges relating to the retention of classified documents.
Scott County Republican Party Chairwoman Jeanita McNulty said that, from what she is seeing, the impact of the indictments is “positive” among her county’s Republicans.
“People are outraged,” she said. “It’s unbelievable to people that it’s actually happening. They’re concerned that our Justice Department is corrupt.”
Some counties in the Hawkeye State have taken the indictment news as just another factor to consider over the months leading up to the caucuses, where Iowa remains first in the nation for Republicans. Democrats have selected South Carolina as their first primary state.
Polk County Republican Party Chairwoman Gloria Mazza said she hasn’t seen a change in voter support of Trump and “had no idea” how the indictments would impact Republican voters heading into the caucuses.
Iowans take the caucus procedure very seriously, she said, leaving the door open for each candidate to present their case to become the GOP’s 2024 presidential nominee.
“They do that every time, no matter what is going on. Whether it’s the indictment or anything, this is Iowa. We are the caucus and we get all these candidates, and we’re talking and looking at every single one,” Mazza said.
Several GOP presidential candidates have also jumped to the former president’s defense. Koch said presidential candidates who attended Sen. Joni Ernst’s (R-IA) “Roast and Ride” event in Des Moines took to the stage and condemned the indictments, which she said was to their benefit.
“They want to compare and contrast to Trump without destroying him,” Koch said, adding that Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are the only ones who have really “punched back” at Trump.
She said her team was keeping track of who would attack Trump, who would ignore him, or who would be the “class act” and discuss the indictments. The candidates overwhelmingly chose the party over their individual run and condemned the criminal cases.
“The candidates remained above the fray, not in the trenches, not the drama. They took the class act and it resonated with Iowans, it really did, and a couple of them actually got a bump,” Koch said.
Still, Trump remains ahead in most polls. A recent Morning Consult poll showed the former president with a 38% lead over DeSantis, his top opponent, and an over 50% lead over other candidates.
“President Trump continues to dominate in poll after poll — both nationally and statewide. He is the only person who is beating Joe Biden by significant margins because voters know President Trump’s return to the White House means a strong economy, a secure border, and a safer America,” Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told the Washington Examiner.
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In McNulty’s county, the election is “anybody’s game,” she said.
“People are just hungry to get in front of every candidate and listen to them, meet them, and hear what they have to say,” McNulty said. “It’s a long way from next year, so they’re going to just go and listen to every candidate and then make up their mind after they’ve had a chance to listen to all the candidates.”