DeSantis beefs up ground game in Iowa

DES MOINES, Iowa — Ron DeSantis is nearly a third of the way through his tour of each county in Iowa — but now with a chairperson backing his campaign in every part of the state.

Never Back Down, the super PAC supporting the Florida governor's presidential bid, has established 120 county-level chairs across the state, with at least one in each of the 99 counties, the organization confirmed to POLITICO. The chair group includes Appanoose County Sheriff Gary Anderson, former state Sen. Mark Chelgren and Clayton Ohrt, the Buchanan County supervisor, along with other GOP activists.

The county-level recruitment is the latest sign of the DeSantis team’s aggressive networking in the first-in-the-nation caucus state, even as his campaign has been beset by weak polling numbers and strategy missteps. The campaign recently shed a third of its staff, and DeSantis replaced his campaign manager, Generra Peck, earlier this week.

But it’s Iowa, in particular, where DeSantis is scrambling to close the gap between himself and Donald Trump. The former president has an overwhelming lead in Republican primary polls nationally, though a slightly narrower advantage in Iowa.

DeSantis has been barnstorming the state in recent weeks, and was back Thursday and Friday for campaign events before a sit-down chat with Gov. Kim Reynolds on Saturday at the state fair. This swing follows a flurry of similar weekends spent traversing Iowa, including small, retail-politics events with a handful of supporters and larger town halls where he has taken questions from the crowd. In late July, DeSantis joined the field of other GOP presidential hopefuls in speaking at the Republican Party of Iowa’s annual Lincoln Dinner, clutching a Coors Light as he greeted a line of supporters afterward in a reception hosted by his super PAC.

With his own campaign facing a major cash crunch, DeSantis is relying heavily on the work of the outside group, which has hosted 17 bus tour events for him in Iowa in recent weeks. The group has 21 staff members working in Iowa, and an official with Never Back Down told POLITICO the super PAC has knocked 236,615 doors here, ultimately holding 69,537 conversations.

The group says it has received commitment cards from over 10,400 people in the state — Republicans pledging to caucus for the governor on Jan. 15.

David Polyansky, previously Never Back Down’s senior adviser who has since taken a job with DeSantis’ campaign, told POLITICO last month that staff with the group were approaching Iowans in places like Walmart parking lots and Culver’s restaurants in an effort to boost its caucus support numbers.

Seemingly in response to the heavy-handed approach of the DeSantis-affiliated super PAC, Trump’s campaign on Thursday sent letters to each state GOP around the country, warning that they aren’t permitted under law to work with a super PAC operating on behalf of a candidate, the Associated Press reported. DeSantis’ campaign has said they are following all federal campaign finance laws.

DeSantis’ all-in-on-Iowa strategy comes as he desperately seeks to show momentum in the Republican presidential primary, where Trump has dominated and seemingly maintained his strength while facing indictments in three separate criminal cases. The Florida governor is touting his participation in the Republican National Committee’s first primary debate later this month, which Trump has yet to agree to attend. The former president on Wednesday said he would announce his decision next week, but reiterated he would not sign a loyalty pledge to back the eventual nominee, one of the committee’s requirements to participate.

The two leading candidates in the race are both set to make appearances at the Iowa State Fair this weekend, a rite of passage in presidential primaries. DeSantis is expected to be elbows-deep in retail-politicking, while Trump’s campaign has yet to disclose the specifics of his plans — other than to bring nine Florida congressmen in tow in an apparent attempt to troll DeSantis.

Both DeSantis and Trump have secured the endorsements of various state legislators in Iowa.