The Ron DeSantis campaign accused the media of election interference for calling the Iowa caucus for Trump early.
DeSantis Communications Director Andrew Romeo tweeted:
Absolutely outrageous that the media would participate in election interference by calling the race before tens of thousands of Iowans even had a chance to vote. The media is in the tank for Trump and this is the most egregious example yet.
— Andrew Romeo (@andrewromeo33) January 16, 2024
The DeSantis campaign also released a statement:
The DeSantis campaign claims “election interference” after the media called the race for Trump so early.#IowaCaucus pic.twitter.com/zmBSFsxMC6
— Political Polls (@PpollingNumbers) January 16, 2024
It is funny that Trump’s own election interference phrase would be used by the DeSantis campaign to taint Trump’s victory.
The DeSantis campaign moved itself to Iowa and put everything on the line in the caucus. If DeSantis finishes third, seeing a path forward for his campaign is difficult. If he finishes second, it might not matter because Nikki Haley is set up in New Hampshire to do very well.
By claiming that the election was called too soon, DeSantis does have a built-in excuse for his defeat, as his team can always wonder what would have happened if the race had not been called so soon. The reality is that the results are lining up with the polling in the state.
If Ron DeSantis stays in the primary beyond Iowa, things could get very ugly between the DeSantis and Trump campaigns.
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