Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, told Newsmax on Friday that women voters are gravitating toward the GOP because their top priority is their families.
Ernst appeared on "Wake Up America," with host Rob Finnerty pointing out a recent New York Times/Siena College survey showed independent women, who previously preferred Democrats by 18 points, now choose Republicans by a 14-point margin.
"I think that our voters are really starting to sort through what are the important issues for this election cycle," Ernst told Finnerty. "And you can only look to President Joe Biden and the Democrats that are in control. We have one party rule in Washington, D.C., and they see how those Democratic policies, the tax and spend, is impacting their families.
"Inflation is rampant, and think back, oh, they said it would be transitory. And it's not. These kitchen-table issues are really swaying women voters — Republicans, Democrats, and otherwise.
"They are interested in those issues that affect their families on a day-to-day basis, and they obviously see that Republicans are the ones that are going to lead us out of this quagmire.
"So, it is absolutely necessary to continue communicating inflation, open borders, fentanyl issues. These are the issues that Republicans can grab a hold of and present real solutions for American families."
Ernst was asked about fellow Iowa GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley's reelection campaign. Two election analysts slightly downgraded Grassley's chances of winning reelection this November following the release of a Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll that showed the senator leading Democrat opponent Mike Franken by just 3 percentage points.
"I'm not concerned about the race," Ernst said. "I would direct people back to two years ago — the same poll had me losing, and yet I won by over 7 points. So, I would disregard this particular poll right now."
"Chuck Grassley is running very, very strong in the state of Iowa. He is so well-respected, known for doing his 99-county tour every single year. Chuck is going to go on and serve in our United States Senate again in January."
Finnerty asked Ernst if Republicans typically underperform in pre-election polling.
"I believe they do," Ernst said, "and I have heard from so many Iowans as well when I'm out on my own 99-county tour.
"They say they receive those [survey] calls and either they just don't respond, and I've even had some that will say, 'I out and out lie when I am on these surveys because I don't want them to know what I'm really thinking.'
"So I don't know that this particular poll is valid right now. We'll start to see hopefully truer numbers as we get closer to Election Day. That's what happened in my own race in 2020, because, of course, the pollsters want to be accurate in those final polls.
"Right now, I think many of them are trying to suppress the Republican voters as well as suppress Republican donors."
Ernst also promoted her annual "Roast and Ride" slated for Saturday at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, Iowa. Grassley, Iowa GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds, and Arkansas Republican gubernatorial candidate Sarah Huckabee Sanders are among those scheduled to attend.
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