Majority of Iowa Republican caucusgoers not concerned if Trump doesn’t debate: Poll

A majority of likely Iowa Republican caucus attendees are not concerned that former President Donald Trump is opting out of GOP presidential debates.

With the third Republican presidential debate looming in a week, 57% do not mind that Trump is skipping, according to the latest NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll released Tuesday. Only 42% of possible Republican caucusgoers think Trump should debate at least once before the presidential caucuses, which will be held on Jan. 15, 2024.

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NBC News is hosting the third GOP presidential debate on Nov. 8 from the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County in Florida. Trump stated last month he will not attend the next GOP debate after missing the first two put on by the Republican National Committee. The former president has cited his sizable lead in national polls as the reasoning for skipping the GOP primary debates.

Multiple Republican presidential candidates who faced off during the second debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, stepped up their criticism of Trump’s absence. Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) began by stating that Trump was “missing in action,” adding, “He should be on this stage tonight. He owes it to you to defend his record.” Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, the strongest Trump critic on the stage, addressed the former president directly, saying, “You’re not here tonight because you’re afraid of being on this stage and defending your record. You’re ducking these things.”

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Among Republicans who are supporting a candidate other than Trump, 60% believe the former president should participate in the debate, while 4 in 10 report it does not concern them.

Trump has a stronghold on the GOP 2024 race in Iowa, according to national polls, faring 27 points ahead of his closest competitors. Trump is at 43% among likely Republican caucusgoers, with DeSantis and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley tied at 16%, according to a Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa poll released Monday.