Koch group spends $70M on Haley, hopes for ‘second or third’ in Iowa

The Koch network-backed super PAC endorsing presidential candidate Nikki Haley is reportedly set to spend $70 million in a bid to get her a “strong showing” in Iowa behind GOP frontrunner Donald Trump.

The large chunk of change indicates that the Charles Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity Action hopes Haley has enough fuel to surge past 2024 rival Ron DeSantis and is not recruiting Trump supporters, Bloomberg reported.

But Bill Riggs, spokesperson for AFP Action told The Post that Haley could come in “second or third.”

“AFP Action is working to help Haley finish as strong as possible in Iowa and continue her momentum into New Hampshire. This is going to be a marathon, not a sprint,” Riggs said in a statement.

“The DeSantis team has poured everything they can into Iowa. Whether Haley comes in second or third, she’ll be well positioned going into New Hampshire, South Carolina and Super Tuesday.”

The “second or third” place finish prediction from Haley’s camp is not new. The former South Carolina governor has recently lowered her public expectations in Iowa by saying she just hopes for a “good showing” at the Jan. 15 caucuses, not necessarily a win. Her campaign has maintained that they are focused on several early states, including Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

DeSantis, meanwhile, has said he hopes to win the Hawkeye State and has funneled significant resources to travel to all 99 counties.

Trump’s campaign has also said they plan on winning Iowa, and have a “10 for Trump” plan intended to turn out a mass of new voters to deliver a blowout.

AFP Action endorsed the former UN ambassador in late November and promised to deploy “thousands” of activists and grassroots leaders “to knock on doors and turn out people to vote,” Haley’s campaign said at the time.

The $70 million — which nears the amount President Biden’s campaign raised last quarter — is a significant boost in funding for Haley, who has been rising in the polls, but has yet to overtake DeSantis.

The former president is averaging 52% in Iowa, compared to the Florida governor’s 20% and Haley’s 15.8%, according to RealClearPolitics.

The largest conservative grassroots coalition has already deployed its army of door knockers to curry favor with voters before caucuses but has already run into some difficulty getting mass support for Haley given DeSantis’ presence on the ground, according to Bloomberg.

DeSantis has also struggled to pick up significant steam in the polls and has had repeated shakeups in his super PAC Never Back Down.

But his campaign maintains they don’t find the Trump polling lead “concerning.”

“I think what you’re going to see in Iowa is the hard work that we’ve already put in come to fruition,” campaign spokesman Andrew Romeo told The Post after the fourth Republican primary debate in Tuscaloosa, Ala. 

“The reality is, we have endorsements from 42 state legislators, we have now visited all 99 counties,” he added. “That stuff is the stuff that’s going to pay off, it’s going to yield the votes.”

The Haley campaign did not respond to inquiries from The Post.