The top three Republican presidential candidates will feature in the crowd of the Iowa-Iowa State football game on Saturday afternoon, for what will likely be the largest sports crowd in the state for the prestigious rivalry game.
Former President Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy have confirmed their attendance, alongside lesser candidates former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.
This year’s game over the Cy-Hawk Trophy is hosted by Iowa State in Ames. The 2021 edition of the rivalry in Ames packed a crowd of 61,500 people.
The game marks what will only be Trump’s sixth trip to the Hawkeye State, while DeSantis has made Iowa a priority of his campaign. The Florida governor has traveled to nearly half of Iowa’s 99 counties, his campaign said.
Trump attended the 2015 edition of the rivalry game, which saw Iowa rout its in-state rivals, also in Ames. He was in South Dakota on Friday for a rally with Gov. Kristi Noem (R), who endorsed Trump and is projected to be a potential running mate.
Trump has tended to schedule his Iowa visits to overlap with DeSantis’, viewed as an attempt to draw attention away from his most significant campaign rival. He made a stop at the Iowa State Fair to a massive crowd last month, while DeSantis walked the grounds with his family to much less fanfare.
Iowa is expected to be critical for DeSantis’ campaign, which has struggled to keep momentum as Trump holds a large lead in polling.
DeSantis has about 13 percent support, according to national polling averages. Trump leads the crowded GOP field with about 53 percent support, while Ramaswamy holds third with about 8 percent support.
On the field, the game is expected to be close as both teams recover from sports betting scandals which rocked their rosters in the offseason. Both teams won their first games last week. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. local time.