A version on this story first appeared in the Decision Desk ‘24: Blake Burman’s Campaign View newsletter
(NewsNation) — Republican candidates will be off the campaign trail the next several days enjoying a short holiday break before the final sprint begins ahead of the first votes in the 2024 primary.
The Iowa caucuses are three weeks away on Jan. 15, with New Hampshire’s primary a week later.
The pause in campaigning comes after the candidates played a version of “Beat the Clock” this week. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley crisscrossed Iowa for most of the week, getting in as many events as they could. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump held his second Iowa rally within a week.
In one of his last events of the week, DeSantis hit the holiday theme, recounting to his audience how he reassured his kids who are worried that Santa Claus might not be able to make it into the governor’s mansion.
“My kids are very concerned though about if there’s complications with the chimney. How does Santa get in? What happens if this happens? I said, ‘See guys, Santa knows how to troubleshoot. Don’t worry about that.'”
There was a more serious question everyone had to answer: How long to pause campaign activities and TV commercials. All the campaigns and super PACs had to weigh whether potential voters wanted to see a candidate or an ad blasting a fellow candidate while opening Christmas gifts.
Haley and DeSantis will be off the campaign trail through the day after Christmas. They are both scheduled to be back on the stump Wednesday.
Several camps are staying on the airwaves. Haley’s campaign will keep airing its commercials through the holidays, says a source with knowledge of the plans: ”Our ads are up and running!”
Several super PACs also will keep their commercials going. The pro-DeSantis Fight Right will run two commercials in Iowa.
Meanwhile, the pro-Trump super PAC, MAGA Inc., will air its ad in the New Hampshire area taking on Haley, who is gaining momentum there. “We’re running through this holiday period,” group spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told NewsNation.
NewsNation’s Jackie Koppel contributed to this story.
