Key facts
- A judge dismissed Donald Trump's lawsuit against the Des Moines Register and pollster Ann Selzer.
- Trump sued over a poll released days before the 2024 election that showed Kamala Harris leading him in Iowa.
- The lawsuit claimed the poll violated the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act, not defamation.
- The judge ruled that conducting a poll does not transform speech into a product.
- Trump's legal team plans to appeal the decision to the Iowa Supreme Court.
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Donald Trump against the Des Moines Register and its longtime pollster Ann Selzer concerning a 2024 Iowa poll. The poll, released three days before the election, showed Vice President Kamala Harris leading Trump 47% to 44% in the state. Trump ultimately won Iowa with 56% of the vote to Harris's 43%.
Trump had denounced the poll as inaccurate and deliberately slanted to disparage him and demoralize his voters. His lawsuit, filed in December 2024, did not claim defamation but instead sought damages for a violation of the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act, describing the poll as a defective product.
However, Judge Beattie disagreed, stating that "Simply labeling the poll a product does not change the analysis." The judge wrote that the fact someone was paid to conduct the poll does not transform it from speech into a product, and that "The rights protected by the First Amendment are not a word game."
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team stated that the president plans to appeal the decision to the Iowa Supreme Court, vowing to hold accountable those who "traffic in deception and fake news."