Asa Hutchinson Is Banking on Trump Conviction and More Primary Dropouts

Republican presidential candidate Asa Hutchinson's goal is to come in fourth place in Iowa in an effort to raise his profile in the primary race in which he has regularly polled in the low single digits, according to a new report.

"I think that if we came in fourth place, then that means we’d beat expectations," said Hutchinson in an interview with Politico.

Hutchinson served as governor of Arkansas from Jan. 2015 to Jan. 2023, was in the House of Representatives, and ran the Drug Enforcement Administration for two years in the George W. Bush administration. But despite his résumé, he's failed to break out in a significant way in the Republican presidential primary this year.

In his interview with Politico, Hutchinson said his long-term strategy is to wait for more candidates to drop out of the primary and for frontrunner former President Donald Trump to be convicted in one of his various ongoing court cases.

"As long as I am able, I want to provide that alternative voice [to Trump," said Hutchinson. "And I’m not sure other candidates have that same level of commitment."

But in the meantime, Hutchinson is polling at under 1%, and has faced many, even people close to him, suggesting he should drop out of the race.

“You’re asking me about risk of embarrassment? People have risked their lives for the country,” Hutchinson told Politico. “Am I supposed to worry about whether I’m going to be embarrassed in a contest, politically? I think our country is more important."