Bob Vander Platts is perhaps the most influential Evangelical in politics in terms of benevolence and activism. His organization, The Family Leader has played a key role in the presidential election process and Christian activism. The Family Leadership Summit was the first major campaign event of the 2024 cycle. Last week, The Family Leader held the Family Leader Thanksgiving Forum which Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Nikki Haley attended. The result of the event was that Ron DeSantis secured the strategic endorsement.
BREAKING: Faith leader @bobvanderplaats endorses Ron DeSantis for president.
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) November 21, 2023
“Gov. DeSantis took a reliable toss-up state in Florida and made it complete red — won by 20 points…He’s also done that by being a bold and courageous leader.”
Vander Plaats endorsed the Iowa Caucus… pic.twitter.com/6vXR2dxZiP
The two most important endorsements in the Iowa Caucus are Bob Vander Platts and Governor Kim Reynolds. Both have endorsed DeSantis.
Will It Matter?
In Iowa, the answer is yes. Governors have fought Trump on endorsements and won. This happened in Georgia. However, Trump being on the ballot does make this less comparable. Trump also lost in 2016 to Ted Cruz who was backed by Vander Platts. DeSantis has a strong possibility of winning Iowa to kick off the primary.
The less answerable yet more important question is how much of an impact this will have on the entire race. On one hand, the Iowa Caucus could be a knockout blow for either Trump or DeSantis. On the other hand, a Trump felony conviction could render every primary before that irrelevant. This race could be over quickly or drag on to the convention floor.
