Trump hits Casey DeSantis over call for out-of-state backers to ‘be a part of the caucus’ in Iowa
The Florida first lady told Fox News viewers that “you do not have to be a resident of Iowa to be able to participate in the caucus."
Former president Donald Trump seized on an apparent blunder by Casey DeSantis, accusing Florida's first lady of attempting to "commit organized voter fraud" with her invitation to out-of-state voters to participate in next month's Iowa caucuses.
Appearing on Fox News on Friday along side her husband, Florida governor and GOP presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, Casey DeSantis claimed that “you do not have to be a resident of Iowa to be able to participate in the caucus." She encouraged “moms and grandmoms to come, from wherever it might be — North Carolina, South Carolina — and to descend upon the state of Iowa to be a part of the caucus."
Those remarks seemingly prompted the Iowa Republican Party to post online that "you must be a legal resident of Iowa and the precinct you live in and bring photo ID with you to participate in the #iacaucus!" In her own social media post later Friday, Casey DeSantis noted the residency requirement for caucus-goers but added that "there is a way for others to participate," calling on her husband's supporters to volunteer in Iowa.
That explanation did little to stop the Trump campaign from attacking the DeSantises.
“The Trump campaign strongly condemns their dirty and illegal tactics and implores all Trump supporters to be aware of the DeSantises’ openly stated plot to rig the Caucus through fraud,” read the statement, which also called on Iowa governor Kim Reynolds to reaffirm that DeSantis had been mistaken and to clarify the caucus rules.
Trump-aligned Make America Great Again PAC weighed in as well, issuing a statement on “Casey DeSantis' Embrace of Voter Fraud.”
“Casey DeSantis’ embrace of voter fraud to salvage her husband’s failing campaign is not just wrong, it risks compromising the integrity of the Iowa Caucus,” said spokesperson Karoline Leavitt in the statement.
Trump has a history of making unfounded claims about election fraud — most significantly, he denied his 2020 presidential election loss and questioned the legitimacy of the election results. He also refused to accept losing the 2016 Iowa caucuses to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.
