CAMPAIGN 2024: Trump wins Republican caucuses in Iowa with commanding victory
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump takes the stage at a caucus night party in Des Moines, Iowa, Monday, Jan. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
By STEVE PEOPLES, THOMAS BEAUMONT and HANNAH FINGERHUT Associated Press
CAMPAIGN 2024: Former President Donald Trump scored a record-setting win in the Iowa caucuses on Monday, a victory that affirmed his grip on the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
In what was the lowest-turnout caucus in a quarter-century, participants endured life-threatening cold and dangerous driving conditions to meet in hundreds of schools, churches and community centers across the state. But those who ventured out delivered a roughly 30-point win for Trump that smashed the record for a contested Iowa Republican caucus with a margin of victory exceeding Bob Dole’s nearly 13-percentage-point victory in 1988.
The results show Trump with the support of 51% of caucus-goers to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis finished a distant second at 21%, just ahead of former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley at 19%.
Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy finished at 8% and has dropped out of the race.
The results left Trump with a tighter grip on the GOP nomination, though it could take several more months for anyone to formally become the party’s standard bearer. The magnitude of Trump’s victory, however, posed significant questions for both DeSantis and Haley. Neither candidate appeared poised to exit the race, though they leave Iowa struggling to claim making much progress in trying to become Trump’s strongest challenger.
Having repeatedly vowed vengeance against his political opponents in recent months, Trump offered a message of unity in his victory speech.
“We want to come together, whether it’s Republican or Democrat or liberal or conservative,” he said. “We’re going to come together. It’s going to happen soon.”
The GOP contest moves swiftly to New Hampshire, which will hold the first-in-the-nation primary on Jan. 23.
(Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.)
