Kitchen Cabinet IOWA CAMPAIGN UPDATE:

Huntsman:  Who?

Rick Santorum:  With almost no funding, Santorum is praying his face-to-face courtship with Iowans in all 99 counties of the state will pay off at the January 3rd Caucuses.  Santorum lines up perfectly with the faith and values of Iowa voters.

Michele Bachmann:  Equally under-funded, Congresswoman Bachmann is  feverishly trying to mirror Santorum’s march across the state and meeting as many Iowans as possible.  Both Santorum and Bachmann still poll in low single digits.

Rick Perry:  Pulling down advertising, but working interfaith networks to try to make a dent in the Iowa vote.  Perry is campaigning without apology as the “Christian” candidate and trying to contrast with Gingrich and Romney.  Perry polls just above Bachmann.  Word is that Evangelical groups are quietly working to get out the “Anyone But Romney” vote to show up for Perry.

Newt Gingrich:  Some polls are more encouraging than others.  The most credible, and non-media driven poll, Rasmussen, shows Gingrich dragging behind Ron Paul and Mitt Romney.  The former Speaker still has enormous verbal support across the country and among deep conservatives, but his organization is so confused that he may not be positioned to compete beyond two states.  At present Gingrich has 17% of the vote in Iowa in most recent Rasmussen poll.

Ron Paul:  The dark horse with a big master plan. Congressman Paul, somewhat erratic in his positions during the debate tournaments, has a big ground organization in Iowa and plans to try to work across the country gaining enough delegates to be a spoiler at the Summer Republican Convention.  Paul currently has 20% of the vote, right behind Mitt Romney in Iowa.

Mitt Romney:  Holding steady at 25% in the recent Rasmussen poll.  Other media-driven polls like ABC/Washington Post show Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney going head to head.  Iowa is such a unique state to follow, it’s hard to know how the two frontrunners will match up.  Gingrich has no ground team in Iowa, and Mitt Romney is organized.  The ground game in Iowa usually determines the Caucus outcome.  Ron Paul, thus, could surprise everyone and BE the surprise.  The Romney camp is comforted that its polling numbers have been constant, regardless of the changing fortunes of other candidates.

Seven days before the voices of voters drown out the voices of pundits.

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Filed under: Featured, Inside The KC, Politics, Uncategorized by Sonja Eddings Brown, Dec 26, 2011