Ron DeSantis And Nikki Haley To Face Off In Debate Ahead Of Iowa Caucuses
By Bill Galluccio
January 10, 2024
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley will face off in Iowa on Wednesday (January 10) in the final Republican debate before the primary season officially kicks off with the Iowa caucuses on January 15.
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy failed to meet the requirements to earn a spot on the stage at Drake University in Des Moines.
Former President Donald Trump, who has a commanding lead over both candidates, qualified for the debate but will not attend.
The two-hour debate will start at 9 pm ET/6 pm PT and air on CNN. It will be hosted by CNN anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.
This will be the last chance for Haley and DeSantis to differentiate themselves from each other and Trump before the first votes are cast. Haley is hoping a solid debate performance will boost her standings in the polls, as she is just one percent behind DeSantis for second place.
DeSantis is hoping he can regain some momentum as he tries to paint himself as a more effective version of Donald Trump.
Two more debates are still scheduled in New Hampshire on January 18 and 21. The New Hampshire primary is on January 23.