Ben Carson Heads Home for 'Fresh Clothes' After Iowa

MANCHESTER, N.H. — After the Iowa caucuses, Dr. Ben Carson will go home to Florida for 24 hours to grab some “fresh clothes,” he told reporters Monday night – but don’t read into it.

The campaign told NBC News that Carson plans to speak at Wednesday’s National Prayer Breakfast – the event that put him on the political map just three years ago – before heading to New Hampshire for Thursday’s debate. His team could not say how many events, if any, the candidate will do while there.

Related: Up to the minute results from Iowa

The Granite State doesn’t appear to be a high priority for Carson, a deeply religious social conservative who has focused on the early states with strong evangelical voting blocks, Iowa and South Carolina. He’s spent just 13 days in New Hampshire so far, according to p2016.org. That is the same number of days Gov. Scott Walker spent in the state, when he ran for president for just three months this summer.

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Ben Carson Isn’t Quitting His Campaign

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Carson’s campaign rushed to downplay the importance of a trip home.

“Dr. Ben Carson is not suspending his presidential campaign, which is stronger than ever,” a statement sent out to reporters read. ”After spending 18 consecutive days on the campaign trail, Dr. Carson needs to go home and get a fresh set of clothes.”

In the polls, however, the campaign isn’t as strong as ever.

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After peaking in November, his numbers have been plummeting. He went into caucus night in fourth place in Iowa, though the campaign emphasized polling that signaled many voters could be swayed in the final hours of the race.

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

The race is still “too close to call,” according to NBC News, but early reporting numbers from the election don’t contradict the predictive polling.

This story originally appeared on MSNBC.com