Mike Huckabee to skip Iowa straw poll because it 'will serve only to weaken conservative candidates'
In another sign of the waning importance of the Iowa straw poll, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) says he will skip the event this year because it divides conservatives and "open[s] a path for a more moderate establishment candidate to ultimately win the nomination."
"Conservative and hard-working Iowans want a strong and principled conservative Republican nominee for president who represents their values," Huckabee wrote in a Des Moines Register op-ed published Thursday. "I have concluded this year's Iowa straw poll will serve only to weaken conservative candidates and further empower the Washington ruling class and their hand-picked candidates."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The straw poll has had little predictive value in the past regarding the eventual GOP nominee, and it has come under fire in recent years as an expensive distraction. Jeb Bush's campaign said last week the former Florida governor would not compete in the straw poll, either.
-
Political cartoons for January 6Cartoons Tuesday’s political cartoons include wrongful deportation, a monster under the surface, and more
-
Why don’t humans hibernate?The Explainer The prospect of deep space travel is reigniting interest in the possibility of human hibernation
-
Would Europe defend Greenland from US aggression?Today’s Big Question ‘Mildness’ of EU pushback against Trump provocation ‘illustrates the bind Europe finds itself in’
-
Trump says US ‘in charge’ of Venezuela after Maduro grabSpeed Read The American president claims the US will ‘run’ Venezuela for an unspecified amount of time, contradicting a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio
-
Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one reportIN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
-
CBS pulls ‘60 Minutes’ report on Trump deporteesSpeed Read An investigation into the deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious prison was scrapped
-
Trump administration posts sliver of Epstein filesSpeed Read Many of the Justice Department documents were heavily redacted, though new photos of both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton emerged
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’
-
House GOP revolt forces vote on ACA subsidiesSpeed Read The new health care bill would lower some costs but not extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies
-
Hegseth rejects release of full boat strike footageSpeed Read There are calls to release video of the military killing two survivors of a Sept. 2 missile strike on an alleged drug trafficking boat
