White House hopeful Binkley spends millions in Iowa

DES MOINES — Despite being one of the least known Republican presidential candidates in the 2024 field, Texas pastor Ryan Binkley outspent all the others in Iowa in the third quarter of this year, pouring more than $3 million into his campaign operation in the state.

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Binkley’s spending dwarfs that of other candidates in the state, though several other candidates are outspending him nationally. Other top spenders in Iowa during the quarter included former President Donald Trump and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who both spent about $200,000, according to Federal Election Commission records for between July 1 and Sept. 30.

The candidate reports, however, do not capture the full picture of political spending in the state. Canvassing and advertising done by outside groups, like the Super PACs that raise money in support of a certain candidate, are not listed in the campaign reports. And the millions that have been spent advertising in Iowa are not all captured in the reports if the ads were produced and placed by a firm outside Iowa.

Donald Trump: $217,679

Former President Donald Trump spent more than $217,000 in Iowa in the quarter, shelling out big payouts for food for events, event space rentals and phone marketing.

Trump spent $10,000 at Steer N Stein at the Iowa State Fair when he held an event there in August, according to his report. The Iowa Pork Producers Association also received $10,000 for catering the day after he visited the fair.

Trump also paid more than $40,000 for telemarketing and data management to Tmone LLC in Iowa City.

Ron DeSantis: $53,496

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s campaign spent about $53,500 in Iowa during the reporting period.

Never Back Down, the Super PAC backing DeSantis, handled a swath of organizing and event planning in the state during that period. The candidate and PAC are legally barred from coordinating spending, but DeSantis has appeared as a guest on tours organized and paid for by the PAC.

The DeSantis campaign’s biggest expense in Iowa over the period was travel. It spent $17,000 at hotels across the state, as DeSantis has pounded the pavement to reach all 99 counties before the caucuses.

An office in West Des Moines cost the campaign about $4,300, and the campaign paid $5,300 to rent out spaces for events.

Since the records were filed, DeSantis’s campaign has said it would double down on its efforts in Iowa. His campaign said it would move about a third of staff to the state and increase the number of offices it has in Iowa.

The $15 million DeSantis raised in the third quarter “not only provides us with the resources we need in the fight for Iowa and beyond, but it also shuts down the doubters who counted out Ron DeSantis for far too long,” campaign manager James Uthmeier said this month.

Nikki Haley: $68,145

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s campaign spent about $68,000 in Iowa in the quarter. About $28,000 of that was for event costs and facility rentals. The campaign also spent $35,000 to rent a voter list from the Republican Party of Iowa.

Haley’s campaign spent about $650 on food and beverages at places like Casey’s, Proudfoot and Bird in Des Moines, and St. Burch Tavern in Iowa City.

Haley also has expanded her presence in Iowa and added new offices in October, after the reporting period for the third quarter, hoping to capitalize on momentum in other early states to boost her support here.

Ryan Binkley: $3.25 million

Ryan Binkley, the Texas pastor and Chief Executive Officer of Generational Group, spent $3.25 million in Iowa in the third quarter.

The vast majority of his spending — more than $3 million — went to Davenport consulting firm Victory Enterprises. The firm is managing Binkley's national campaign, he said in an interview.

Binkley’s campaign paid Victory Enterprises nearly $1.8 million for advertising and digital services, $1 million for printing merchandise and signs and thousands more for phone services and consulting.

The advertising campaigns, split between TV, digital and radio, are focused on Iowa but include national media as well, Binkley said.

“For us it’s always been really important to do well here,” Binkley said. “Because we don’t have $30 million, $50 million, whatever they’ve been spending on national advertising, so a lot of people have been outspending us from a national perspective.”

Binkley's campaign is largely self-funded. He gave $4.75 million to his campaign during the third quarter, about 95 percent of total fundraising.

The campaign spent more than $650,000 on hats alone. Binkley’s campaign often gives out hats for free at events and large gatherings, like the State Fair.

“We love passing out hats, we’re trying to get our name out there more,” Binkley said. “…We just love sharing, giveaways, signing up and just letting people know who we are.”

Binkley’s campaign spent $100,000 on event costs in Iowa. That includes about $66,000 to the consulting firm Right Strategies for event setup, and a $10,000 sponsorship to The Family Leader, a conservative evangelical organization.

Binkley entered the race with almost no name recognition and has failed to catch fire in polls with his focus on Iowa. A recent poll from Civiqs and Iowa State University found his support at 2 percent among likely Iowa caucusgoers — ranking above former Vice President Mike Pence and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, but still well within the margin of error.

Vivek Ramaswamy: $193,973

Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign was another top spender in Iowa for the period: The campaign spent around $194,000 between advertising, event costs and travel.

Ramaswamy's campaign spent more than $40,000 on newspaper advertising. He spent nearly $34,000 on events at the Iowa Events Center and Iowa State Fair, as well as sponsoring events put on by the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition and the state Republican Party.

On food and beverages, the campaign spent $23,000 at places like Hy Vee and Kingston's Steakhouse in Cedar Rapids.

Ramaswamy was the biggest spender at Pizza Ranch, a common destination for GOP candidates in Iowa: his campaign devoted a total of $2,538 to the establishment.

Tim Scott: $6,931

South Carolina U.S. Sen. Tim Scott had among the lowest expenses in Iowa this period: his campaign spent only about $6,900.

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Most of that was for event costs, including at the State Fair and at ISU. The campaign paid $6,000 to the Republican Party of Iowa for event registration in July.

Scott’s campaign, similar to other candidates who have been struggling to break through Trump’s outsized support, said Monday it would be revamping its efforts in Iowa. In an interview at an event this week, Scott said Iowans need to hear “more of my message.”

“It’s the same message, they just need to hear it more often, and being here will allow it to happen more often,” he said.

Mike Pence: $61,827

Pence’s campaign spent about $61,800 in Iowa during the quarter, with a heavy focus on political consulting and media production.

The campaign paid Joseph Huss of Des Moines more than $25,000 for consulting during the period. Light This Productions in Grimes received $21,000 for audio visual services.

Doug Burgum: $58,351

Burgum spent $58,000 in Iowa during the period, with much of that — about $30,000 — was for media consulting with The Concept Works, the consulting firm run by Eric Woolson, Burgum’s Iowa state director.

He spent $10,000 on catering services and another $1,500 on event costs, along with $11,800 on travel.

Asa Hutchinson: $13,629

Asa Hutchinson, the former governor of Arkansas, spent nearly all of his $13,600 in the state on travel.

Hutchinson has been prioritizing small-scale retail politicking at farmers markets and local events, which has made his event costs minimal. His campaign spent close to $2,000 at the Iowa Craft Beer Tent at the State Fair to cater an event.

Larry Elder: $3,098

Larry Elder, the California former talk show host who ran unsuccessfully in a recall election against Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, spent just over $3,000 in Iowa in the reporting period.

The campaign spent more than $2,500 on printing and digital services with Global Direct Mail and Marketing, a mail campaign and strategy firm. Another $550 was spent on event and travel costs.

Chris Christie: $367

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has been absent from Iowa this year, instead focusing his attention on New Hampshire, the first primary state that will vote shortly after Iowa’s caucuses.

Even so, Christie did have one expense in Iowa during this period: The campaign spent $367 on LimoLink, a limo service in Marion, in September.