Record Trump win in Iowa caucus, DeSantis distant second, Ramaswamy drops out

The former United States president Donald J. Trump came closer to a rematch he seeks with President Joe Biden, emerging as the dominant frontrunner in the Iowa causes for the Republican Party.

Trump’s overwhelming victory, backed by over $123 million in advertising, saw him clinch over 50% of the vote, with governor Ron DeSantis of Florida far behind him at 20%, and former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley coming in third at 19%.

The contest now turns to New Hampshire, a more moderate state where polls show Haley with more support.

Yet Trump won Iowa easily despite campaigning far less than his Republican opponents, who spent weeks campaigning across the state, while Trump flew into Iowa only about a dozen times.

Trump outperformed DeSantis in conservative strongholds, including northwest Iowa, which is home to many evangelical voters who were heavily courted by DeSantis. Even in more moderate suburban counties surrounding Des Moines, considered favourable to Haley, Trump won, albeit with far tighter margins.

Tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who cast himself as a younger, outspoken heir to Trump’s MAGA movement, captured less than 8 percent of votes. He quickly suspended his campaign and endorsed Trump on Monday evening.

With the former president finishing at 51%, it is now unclear how long DeSantis will have without enough cash to forge ahead. DeSantis had staked his campaign on Iowa, and his super PAC spent tens of millions of dollars on a vast door-knocking operation in the state.

He visited all 99 counties, stopped by tiny towns and pubs, and took questions from locals and the press. But DeSantis tried to run to Trump’s right — portraying him as insufficiently conservative — and the strategy failed.

Nikki Haley finished closely behind DeSantis by consolidating the party’s marginalised anti-Trump bloc, attracting college-educated Republicans, independents and even some Democrats living in urban and suburban areas.