Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former Trump UN Ambassador Nikki Haley will face off in the last GOP presidential debate before the “first in the nation” Iowa Republican caucuses, but this time Haley, not DeSantis, will likely be walking on stage as the number-two ranked candidate.
On Wednesday, January 10, Haley and DeSantis will appear on CNN’s GOP presidential primary debate. Donald Trump, the front-runner for the Republican Party’s nomination who is beating both candidates by about 50 points, will once again not participate in the nationally-televised debate. Instead, Trump will appear the same day at a Fox News town hall, CNN reports. CNN anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash will moderate the debate.
As of Tuesday morning, Trump is now averaging 61.3% in the 2024 GOP presidential race polls. Former Governor Haley is averaging just 11.4%, and Governor DeSantis is averaging 11.3%, all according to FiveThirtyEight. That’s a switch — DeSantis had been the number two ranked candidate for most of the race, but Haley’s popularity has been increasing as his has been decreasing. That could change as new polls are added to FiveThirtyEight’s average.
Vivek Ramaswamy, the conspiracy theory-promoting political newcomer, did not make CNN’s cut. Nor did former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Both are polling at just under 4%.
CNN describes it as “a one-on-one clash between two candidates vying to emerge as the party’s lone, clear alternative to the former president.”
Trump is facing 91 charges related to his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election he lost, and related to the classified and top secret government documents he allegedly unlawfully removed from the White House and refused to return.
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