US elections: Trump 'runaway favourite' for Republican Party Presidential candidacy

WASHINGTON DC: Republican candidates are beginning to prepare final pitches in preparation for the essential Iowa Caucasus, with the nomination, so far, appearing to lean towards Donald Trump’s reinstatement as President of the United States, The Hill reported.

The Iowa Caucasus political party meeting that selects the US presidential candidates, and is often regarded as an important indicator of a candidate’s likely success.

The 2024 Iowa Republican presidential caucuses will be held on January 15, 2024, as part of the Republican Party primaries for the 2024 presidential election.

Trump appears to be the runaway favourite in the race for presidential candidature. In January, when data and polling site FiveThirtyEight began tracking the GOP nomination battle, Trump was ahead of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis by about 10 points nationally. On Wednesday, his lead was 47 points, The Hill reported.

Trump stands at roughly 60 per cent support, which suggests that even if the field narrowed to a one-on-one match-up, any rival would have a tough job defeating him, this gap has grown since the withdrawal of Trump’s former Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Tim Scott.

Trump’s indictment in the case alleging mishandling of classified documents has loomed over his candidature; however, Trumps persistent time handling court cases appears not to have had a lasting effect on his candidacy run.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s theory that the Make America Great Again (MAGA) supporters of the electorate are open to voting for an alternative bearer appears increasingly inviable.

As the Iowa Caucasus grows ever closer, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, still trails DeSantis in the national polls but hopes that she can top DeSantis during the Iowa Caucasus less than two months away, The Hill reported.

Haley is an experienced politician and former governor of South Carolina, a state known for bare-knuckle politics, and has emerged in popularity after strong debate performances fuelled her momentum. She is drawing attention from Grand Old Party (GOP) donors seeking a nominee other than Trump.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has lost momentum in achieving Republican candidature; his campaign has been very underwhelming and is slipping under strong candidates such as Trump and Haley, The Hill reported.

The Florida governor’s backers maintain that his ground operation in Iowa can still pay dividends. He is clearly stronger there than in New Hampshire, and the endorsements will help.

Another member still just in the race is Vivek Ramaswamy, although the novelty seems to have worn off in his candidature run. In the FiveThirtyEight averages, he’s polling at just 5 per cent nationally and in Iowa, and 7 per cent in New Hampshire, The Hill reported.

Ramaswamy, 38, has a fairly fervent online following, but there’s no real sign that will translate to true political success.

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is one of the least likely in the race to win the candidature. Many blame this on his attacks on Trump, which have earned him plenty of media attention, but very little support in a party where a vast majority of voters — 82 per cent, according to the latest Economist/YouGov poll — holds a favourable impression of the former president.

Christie has real skills, which he displays on the debate stage and which previously earned him two terms as the governor of a blue state but due to his anti-Trump rhetoric, it is increasingly less likely that he will find success in Iowa in two months.