CNN to host back-to-back GOP presidential town halls with DeSantis and Haley in Iowa

Republican presidential candidates Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley will participate in back-to-back live CNN presidential town halls next month in Iowa, the network announced Friday.

Both will appear at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on January 4 — just 11 days before voters head to the polls in Iowa, a critical early state in the primary election calendar that can make or break a campaign’s momentum.

CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins will moderate the town hall with DeSantis at 9 p.m. ET, and CNN anchor Erin Burnett will moderate the town hall with Haley at 10 p.m. ET.

Each candidate will field questions from the moderators and from an audience of Iowa voters who say they intend to vote in the Iowa Republican caucuses.

National and state polling shows that Donald Trump holds a commanding lead in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, but DeSantis, the governor of Florida, and Haley, the former South Carolina governor who served almost two years as US ambassador to the United Nations during the Trump administration, are battling to be the top alternative to the former president.

The event marks the latest in CNN’s series of Republican presidential town halls for the 2024 cycle. The network previously announced it will host two Republican presidential primary debates next month in Iowa and New Hampshire. The Iowa debate, on January 10, will be moderated by CNN anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.

The town hall will stream live on CNN Max and for pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN connected TV and mobile apps. The town halls will also be available On Demand beginning Friday, January 5 to pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN apps, and Cable Operator Platforms.