With it’s outsized importance in the Presidential nominating process, residents of the state of Iowa are used to rubbing elbows with nationally famous politico types as soon as the midterm elections start counting their votes two years prior.
And one of the most popular places to gain that exposure with voters is the annual Cy-Hawk Trophy game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Iowa State Cyclones. This year’s edition is in Ames on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT, but the Hawkeyes check in as a 4.5-point favorite at DraftKings Sportsbook as of now.
Here’s the current list of candidates expected to attend from Action Network’s Brett McMurphy, and we’ll add any additional names that make to Jack Trice Stadium this weekend.
Republican Presidential candidates Ron DeSantis, Donald Trump, Asa Hutchinson & Vivek Ramaswamy all plan to attend Saturday’s Iowa at Iowa State game
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) September 7, 2023
Expect to also see plenty of campaign staffers and volunteers wearing buttons and passing out literature during the tailgate for the big game, which will have the parking lots open six hours before kickoff. That’s plenty of time to make plenty of voter contacts.
The oft-byzantine Iowa Republican caucus process is set for Monday, January 15, 2024, which is also a federal holiday as it’s Martin Luther King Day.