By Nathan Layne and Tim Reid
URBANDALE/DES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) – Even Jesus could lend a hand when Iowans face frigid weather conditions to pick their Republican presidential nominee on Monday, set to be a record cold caucus night with temperatures as low as -20 degrees Fahrenheit (-29 degrees Celsius).
“I’m declaring that it be warmer in Jesus’ name,” evangelist Patricia Lage told Reuters at an event on Thursday featuring former President Donald Trump’s eldest son Don Jr. in Urbandale, on the outskirts of the state capital city Des Moines.
But Lage, who backs Trump’s bid for another term in the White House, said his supporters would turn out no matter what.
“The Trump people are hardcore,” she said.
Trump holds a commanding lead over his two main opponents, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, both in Iowa and nationwide polling in the battle to challenge Democratic President Joe Biden in November’s election.
The Republican state-by-state nominating race kicks off in three days with the caucuses in Iowa, where blizzard conditions on Friday prompted Haley to scrap several campaign stops.
“I definitely know I’m not in South Carolina anymore,” she quipped as she spoke to voters in northwestern Iowa through a virtual town hall.
Some voters managed to make a DeSantis event early on Friday in Ankeny but worried about the cold awaiting them on caucus night.
“I think it’s going to impact how many people attend the caucuses,” said DeSantis supporter Fred Schuster, 68.
Carmine Boal, 67, who is backing Haley, was more optimistic.
“I wish we had a 72-degree sunny day, but we can’t control the weather,” Boal said. “That’s one thing we’ve learned in Iowa.”
HARDINESS
DeSantis’ deputy campaign manager David Polyansky told reporters on Friday that he expected a robust turnout on Monday night.
He predicted that DeSantis’ organizational efforts in Iowa, where he has visited all 99 counties, would be an advantage in turning out voters in such conditions.
“I wouldn’t want to go into minus 17-degree temperatures not being the hardest working campaign and candidate and the most organized,” Polyansky said at a media roundtable hosted by Bloomberg in Des Moines.
“In these kind of elements, that’s the kind of ground game, that’s the kind of history you want to have going into this,” he added.
Polyansky said DeSantis would not drop out of the race after Iowa, noting that the candidate planned to be in New Hampshire, the second Republican nominating state, for debates scheduled for Jan. 18 and Jan. 21.
DeSantis has banked his campaign on a strong result in Iowa and is essentially tied for second-place with Haley in the state, while trailing her in New Hampshire.
“We’re in this for the long haul. I want to make that abundantly clear,” Polyansky said.
OREGON COURT SIDESTEPS TRUMP CHALLENGE
Oregon’s top court on Friday declined to consider a challenge to Trump’s eligibility for the state’s May Republican primary under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution’s ban on people who have engaged in “insurrection” holding office.
The state Supreme Court held off on hearing the case while the U.S. Supreme Court considers an appeal of Colorado’s decision to disqualify Trump from the ballot in that state.
The Oregon Supreme Court said the challengers, a group of five state voters backed by the left-leaning advocacy group Free Speech for People, may revive their case later depending on the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling following Feb. 8 arguments.
Trump has faced legal challenges to his candidacy in several states from voters and advocates who have argued that he engaged in insurrection when he spread false claims that the 2020 election had been stolen through voter fraud and then urged his supporters to march on Congress to stop the certification of the results.
Colorado and Maine deemed Trump ineligible for the presidency, but both states put their decisions on hold while Trump appeals. The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling is expected to give clarity on Trump’s eligibility, but may not fully resolve the issue.
(Additional reporting by Gabriella Borter and Andrew Goudsward in Washington; Writing by Nathan Layne and Costas Pitas; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Alistair Bell)
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