Trump Bests DeSantis With Iowa Evangelicals, Garners Support From 300 Faith Leaders

During every Republican presidential primary election, candidates seeking to win the GOP presidential nomination always, always seek the support and endorsements from the ever-important evangelical vote, and in the 2024 sweepstakes, both former President Trump and Governor Ron DeSantis are trying to out-Jesus one another in the pivotal Iowa Caucuses.

Gov. DeSantis’s campaign came out singing Hallelujah the loudest, courting Iowa evangelicals on Day 1 and eventually garnered the endorsement of Bob Vander Platts, an influential pastor.

DeSantis also rolled out the support of about 150 local faith leaders, but he was quickly countered by President Trump, who has not rolled out 300 Iowa faith-based leaders.

"President Trump is the clear choice for people of faith in America. Unlike other politicians, when President Trump promises he will do something, he keeps his promises,” said Pastor Jamison Plank from Henry County, Iowa. “President Trump has an unmatched record of defending family values, promoting religious freedom, and championing moral clarity and biblical authority."

By garnering a significant amount of support from the evangelical community in Iowa, President Trump continues to steamroll Gov. DeSantis and the rest of the field of candidates, as a new Iowa-centric Fox Business public opinion poll shows the former president leading both DeSantis and Ambassador Nikki Haley by 34 and 36 percentage points, respectively.

In New Hampshire, the first primary election state, Haley has surged past DeSantis, who is in single digits but is still 14 points down from Trump.

Nationally, Trump’s surge continues to spike. The four latest national polls by Quinnipiac, Yahoo News, Economist/YouGov, and Morning Consult, show Trump leading Haley and DeSantis by 41 to 56 percentage points.

President Trump’s Iowa Faith Leader Coalition includes: 

Paul Figie, Pastor, Jackson County

Richard Kessler, Pastor, Wapello County

Josue Rodriguez, Pastor Scott County

Korene Sturtz, Pastor, Clinton County

Rick Bick, Pastor, Wapello County

Tony Hacker, Pastor, Scott County

Dave Tyree, Pastor, Lucas County

Rose Kessler, Pastor, Keokuk County

Marti Puls, Minister, Scott County

Darin Sturtz, Pastor, Clinton County

David Lage, Ministry Leader, Warren County

Joshua Graber, Pastor, Benton County

Brad Sherman, Pastor, Iowa County

Jimmy Tyree, Pastor, Marion County

John Johnson, Ministry Leader, Polk County

Greg McCall, Ministry Leader, Polk County

Jerry Reynolds, Pastor, Clinton County

Joel Koebnat, Pastor, Scott County

Patrick Wiedemeier, Pastor, Hamilton County

Travis Decker, Pastor, Wapello County

Brad Schroeder, Pastor, Story County

Robert Klaus, Ministry Leader, Linn County

Dean Scott, Pastor, Dallas County

Dan McCoy, Pastor, Polk County

Mike Griffiths, Pastor, Scott County

Cyril Mckay, Pastor, Mahaska County

Janice Barger, Pastor, Muscatine County

Mike Simiele, Pastor, Howard County

Ernie Rudolph, Elder, Dallas County

Dick Green, Ministry Leader, Linn County

Michael Elmore, Pastor, Jones County

Roger Adkins, Pastor, Scott County

Tammy Adkins, Pastor, Scott County

Stephen Cohenour, Ministry Leader, Fayette County

Roland Waterman, Pastor, Fayette County

Linda Nichols, Elder, Clinton County

Tim Nichols, Elder, Clinton County

Lorie Hartman, Elder, Clinton County

Don Culp, Pastor, Lee County

Patricia Lage, Ministry Leader, Warren County

David Sixtos-Villa, Pastor, Polk County

Kathryn Bohn, Ministry Leader, Scott County

Steven Sears, Elder, Clinton County

Kathy Cline, Worship Leader Story County

Jennifer Bramble, Youth Leader, Polk County

Kelly Wyllie, Ministry Leader, Polk County

John Gilworth, Elder, Wapello County

Mark Densmore, Elder, Polk County

Scott Hill, Pastor, Guthrie County

Madison Sturtz, Board Member, Clinton County

Luana Stoltenberg, Ministry Leader, Scott County

Katherine Watsey, Ministry Leader, Jefferson County

Glen Meyers, Pastor, Audubon County

Joshua Davis, Pastor, Scott County

Paul Dykstra, Ministry Leader Ringgold County

Darren Young, Pastor, Marshall County

David Brown, Pastor, Warren County

Adam Whitty, Pastor, Floyd County

Mary Merritt, Missionary, Guthrie County

Dennis Merritt, Missionary, Guthrie County

Ken Bose, Pastor, Greene County

Susan Bose, Ministry Leader, Greene County

Sandra Hanlon, Ministry Leader, Woodbury County

Mike Hanlon, Ministry Leader, Woodbury County

Dianne Schafer, Fellowship Leader, Adair County

Diane Collette, Small Group Leader, Polk County

Doug Campbell, Elder, Cerro Gordo County

Don Buhrow, Pastor, Polk County

Garrett Lamb, Pastor, Polk County