Campaign Almanac: More GOP presidential candidates added to Ashley Hinson’s BBQ Bash

More 2024 Republican presidential candidates have been added to the lineup for Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson’s annual summer fundraiser.

Hinson’s campaign announced Friday that three presidential hopefuls — North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Ohio biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson — have been added to the lineup for her Aug. 6 BBQ Bash at Hawkeye Downs Speedway & Expo Center in Cedar Rapids.

Hinson, of Marion, previously announced Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and former governor of South Carolina, as speakers at her third annual political fundraiser.

Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds and Iowa Republican U.S. Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst also are set to join Hinson on stage.

“Iowans take our first-in-the-nation status seriously, and the BBQ Bash will be a great opportunity to showcase Iowa and hear from candidates” and “share their vision to get our country back on track,” Hinson said in a statement.

Hinson invited all of the GOP presidential candidates to join her at her annual BBQ Bash in the leadoff caucus state for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.

Hinson has no plans to endorse a candidate ahead of the caucuses, though that may change, a source in Hinson's political orbit told The Gazette.

“She has been in regular communication with candidates and will continue welcoming them to the district throughout the primary as a neutral ambassador,” the source said.

They added that Hinson "is encouraging the candidates to lean in and talk about“ education, school choice and parents’ rights.

Tickets can be purchased at ashleyhinson.com/bbq.

Poll: Trump maintains large lead in Iowa

A PAC supporting former President Donald Trump published polling that shows Trump with a 23-point lead in Iowa over the field of Republican presidential candidates.

Trump was at 44 percent and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at 21 percent, according to the poll published by the American Greatness PAC.

The third-highest response in the poll, at 14 percent, was “undecided.” South Carolina U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, at 7 percent, was the only other candidate to poll above 3 percent.

For the poll, the American Greatness PAC commissioned National Research Inc., which surveyed 500 likely Iowa Republican primary voters on July 5 and July 6, according to the PAC’s memo. The margin of error for the poll is plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.

Trump launches ‘Farmers for Trump’ in Iowa

Former President Donald Trump on Friday launched “Farmers for Trump,” a coalition of Iowa agricultural leaders who support his bid for the Republican nomination for president.

“Whether negotiating fairer trade deals, supporting access to new markets for ethanol, battling burdensome federal regulations, or providing record amounts of trade assistance to the agriculture community, President Trump has repeatedly fought for America’s farmers and their way of life,” according to Trump’s campaign.

State Rep. Mike Sexton, a Republican farmer from Rockwell City and chairman of the Iowa House Agriculture Committee, said the former president “stood up to China taking advantage of Iowa’s farmers, repealed the devastating Waters of the U.S. rule, protected Iowa’s critical ethanol industry and replaced NAFTA with the incredible USMCA trade deal.”

State Rep. Heather Hora, a Republican and farmer from Washington, Iowa, said, “As a mother and fifth-generation farmer, I witnessed the incredible advances made by Iowa’s farming families, thanks to President Trump’s Administration.”

Sexton and Hora serve as co-chairs of Iowa Farmers for Trump, along with state Rep. Derek Wulf, a Republican and farmer from Hudson; David Kerr, a farmer and former state lawmaker from Morning Sun; and Jeremy Davis, a former senior official at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.