Why Trump’s huge lead in Iowa and New Hampshire could pose a problem for GOP front-runner

Former President Donald Trump‘s massive lead in the Iowa and New Hampshire Republican primaries could pose an issue for him.

Trump has touted his high standing with voters in Iowa and New Hampshire, already portraying both contests as blowouts in his favor. However, that strategy could spell danger for the front-runner, as some Republican strategists are pointing out. His confidence in a blowout means that those in second and third — Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley — only have to reach a certain percentage to beat Trump’s high bar.

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“Trump is out there saying, ‘Listen, I’m 70 points up here, I’m 60 points up here. He’s setting this up, and this has always been his M.O. — of winning, of inevitability,” Matthew Bartlett, a Republican strategist, told Politico. “That is a very dangerous thing when it comes to politics.”

If the two were to reach a certain percentage, voters could sense panic in Trump’s camp, possibly spelling disaster. Some analysts said there was a hint of this in recent attack ads aired against Haley in New Hampshire.

“There’s a real chance,” Rob Stutzman, a Republican political strategist, told the outlet, “that voters will smell fear.”

The ad attacking Haley “is a sign that they’re seeing numbers that make them nervous,” he added.

While the polls suggest, and most analysts agree, that Trump has little chance of losing in Iowa, a strong performance by Haley could boost her chances of proving she can win in New Hampshire, where she has seen a surge in popularity, overtaking DeSantis for second place — though still 21.5 points behind Trump.

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Alternatively, DeSantis has put all of his chips in on Iowa. The successful governor has a massive 32.7-point gap to make up between now and Jan. 15, but if he exceeds expectations, a second-place finish could throw a shadow of doubt over polls and make voters reconsider how strong Trump really is.

The primary appears to have been whittled down to a three-person race, with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie still campaigning but looking in from the outside. Christie recently said he would be willing to back either DeSantis or Haley for president, and big wins, or close seconds, by either of them in Iowa or New Hampshire could force him to put his support where his mouth is.