DES MOINES, Iowa As Republican presidential hopefuls criss-cross the first-voting state in the primaries in the hopes of knocking off Donald Trump , the coup-attempting former president appears to be doing all he can to help them.

Trump continues to avoid the sort of small-group, retail politicking Iowans have come to expect from candidates. Last month, he skipped Iowa Sen. Joni Ernsts Roast and Ride fundraiser. Last week, he began attacking the states popular Republican governor for refusing to endorse him. And on Friday, he is skipping a major candidates forum hosted by the Family Leader, a prominent evangelical Christian group in a state where those voters make up the majority of likely GOP caucusgoers.

I dont think hes doing himself any favors in Iowa, said Thomas Bean, the 23-year-old vice president of the local Bull Moose Club for under-40 Republicans . He thinks its in the bag for him.

Trump is leading his rivals by substantial margins in both national polls as well as the relatively few Iowa polls that have been conducted so far this year. But Iowa veterans point out that polling leads six months out from voting have historically meant little former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker was leading Iowa eight years ago and that most Republican caucusgoers have not yet started paying close attention to the race.

People want to kick the tires three or four times, said Keith Hunter, a board member of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, which on Thursday evening sponsored a house party for biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. And theyll decide late.

A common view among Republican consultants and political observers is that an Iowa loss for Trump could prove fatal to his chances to win back the White House and thereby protect himself from the various criminal prosecutions he faces.