Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday criticized former President Donald Trump for “misleading” voters in a campaign ad airing in the Hawkeye State, which features outdated footage of Ms. Reynolds praising him.
“It’s misleading and it’s not fair to Iowans,” Ms. Reynolds told Fox News Digital on Dec. 19.
“He [President Trump] was upset with me because I was going to stay neutral at the beginning of the campaign for the first-in-the-nation caucus, which I did for seven months,” she added.
Currently in her second term, Gov. Reynolds initially said she would remain neutral in the Republican primary race. However, she has appeared alongside Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on at least eight occasions since he announced his candidacy in late May.
The Iowa caucuses will happen on Jan. 15. Ms. Reynolds said during campaign rally last month that Mr. DeSantis stands a better chance of winning the 2024 general election than the former president.
Ms. Reynolds mentioned in a Fox News Digital interview that following her endorsement of Mr. DeSantis last month, President Trump deemed it “worthless” and called her “the worst governor in the country.”
“That’s on one hand, and now we look at another hand—he’s using me in a commercial that dates back to 2016 and again [is] misleading Iowans as if I was endorsing him and going back and forth,” she said.
“In 2016 and 2020, I supported President Trump. I endorsed him. I helped him in the state of Iowa. It’s a different day. It’s a different time,” the governor added.
Ms. Reynolds said that Iowa residents could thank the former president and then move on. She believes that Iowa needs “somebody that can win” and “can follow through on what they said they were going to do.”
“I have endorsed Ron DeSantis. I’m proud of my endorsement, and I believe he’s the guy that can get this country back on track,” she remarked.
Ms. Reynolds has campaigned with several Republican presidential hopefuls in recent months. In throwing her support behind Mr. DeSantis, she touted him as an accomplished leader worthy of her support.
Her endorsement signifies a major shift as she seeks to rally non-Trump Republicans and narrow the polling gap between Mr. DeSantis and the former president in Iowa and other states.
Polls show President Trump performing better than Mr. DeSantis in matchups against President Joe Biden. According to an Iowa state poll, 54 percent of respondents said they would list President Trump as their top choice for the GOP nomination if they caucused that day, while 17 percent of likely Iowa caucus-goers prefer Mr. DeSantis.
Mr. DeSantis, who’s campaigned and spent heavily in Iowa, having visited all 99 counties in the Hawkeye State, said the polls won’t determine the outcome of the GOP’s Iowa Caucus. Only the voters will.
“I’ve looked at polls and past Iowa caucuses, and they never come out right,” he told a crowd at Olde Boston’s Restaurant & Pub in Ft. Dodge, Iowa, on Dec. 16.
“Maybe I’m just old fashioned, but I think people actually decide these things,” Mr. DeSantis said. “I don’t think pundits decide ... so I think you guys should be determined to make your voice heard.”
He argued the media and others do not want to see him succeed because he'd be the strongest Republican candidate in a general election. Mr. DeSantis said more than $30 million has been spent on negative messaging against him.
“People know I will upset the applecart in D.C.,” he said. “I'll be a change agent. I’m not just going to talk, I’m actually going to deliver.”
