- Former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake has the highest popularity among Iowa GOP voters as a possible vice president to former President Donald Trump’s 2024 bid.
- A new Iowa caucus poll shows that Lake and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley are tied as the top pick for the post.
- Many have speculated that Trump might pick Lake or Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene as his running mate.
Former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake received some good news out of Iowa this week when a poll showed her with the highest popularity among state GOP voters as a possible vice president to former President Donald Trump in his 2024 White House bid.
A poll released Thursday from J.L. Partners showed Lake overwhelmingly favored among potential Iowa Caucus voters who prefer Trump over Florida Governor Ron DeSantis as the Republican presidential nominee. Although DeSantis has not announced a 2024 bid, polls show him as Trump’s most formidable challenger in the GOP primaries.
Among Trump supporters, 32 percent said Lake should be the vice presidential candidate, compared to 10 percent who picked former South Carolina Governor and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. However, voters who want DeSantis to be the GOP nominee preferred Haley (34 percent), South Carolina Senator Tim Scott (15 percent) or former Housing Secretary Ben Carson (14 percent) over Lake (8 percent) as Trump’s running mate.
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This could bode particularly well for Lake since Trump led DeSantis in the survey’s head-to-head matchup. Trump had 47 percent support to DeSantis’ 39 percent, with 15 percent still undecided. The former president also seems to have more unwavering support as 70 percent of voters who back Trump said they had made up their mind, while 56 percent of DeSantis supporters said they might change their mind.
Lake has not yet announced any ambitions to run on the presidential ticket, but many political pundits have speculated that Trump might pick her or Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia as his running mate. The two women are among his most loyal allies.
Lake was tied with Haley in a general list of possible vice presidential candidates, with each receiving 17 percent support. Carson received 11 percent, while Scott had 10 percent and 4 percent picked Greene.
In a statement sent to Newsweek, a spokesperson for Lake said, “Poll after poll after poll proves that voters agree on one thing: they want Kari Lake to dig her heels in and continue to fight for our great Republic.”
“One thing is certain: her story has only just begun,” spokesman Colton Duncan told Newsweek.
Lake became a rising star in the Republican Party after she was endorsed by Trump in Arizona’s 2022 race for governor. Although she lost to Democrat Katie Hobbs by more than 17,000 votes, Lake has not conceded and continues to insist that voting irregularities in Maricopa County cost her the race. She is engaged in an election lawsuit she hopes will overturn the results. Hobbs has served as governor since January.
Duncan said Lake remains “dedicated” to the election lawsuit and that the Republican “will not waver in her fight to protect the sacred right to vote for all Arizonans, and all Americans.”
Iowa is of particular importance to Republicans because it is the first major contest in the party’s primary season. The Democratic Party‘s first primary is in South Carolina. While the results of caucuses do not always determine who will become the next president, they offer a strong indicator as to how a candidate might fare later on.
Trump, DeSantis, Haley, Scott and former Vice President Mike Pence have visited Iowa in recent months. Lake took a trip to the state in February.
Although Lake is a prominent figure in Arizona politics, she was raised in Donahue, Iowa, and attended North Scott High School in Eldridge. During her February visit, she applauded Iowa for having more secure elections than Arizona and vowed to “do everything in my power to get [Trump] elected” in 2024.
Update 04/07/23 6:12 p.m. This story was updated with comments from Duncan.