Former President Trump has for months been the clear Republican presidential frontrunner. The first GOP voting contest showed why.
Trump got 51 percent of the vote in the Iowa caucuses on Monday, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis a distant second at 21 percent and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley third at 19 percent.
The massive win for Trump in the red state came even as another a generally pro-Trump candidate, Vivek Ramaswamy, carried 8 percent of the vote. The biotech entrepreneur later dropped out and endorsed Trump.
The most vocal critics of Trump in the race barely registered support or dropped out before Iowa: former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie called it quits last week, and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson got 0.2 percent.
The Hill’s Niall Stanage breaks down 4 ways Iowa underlined Trump’s “near-inevitability” as the GOP nominee, noting the “longer Trump can put off a one-on-one match-up, the greater the chances that his lead will become impregnable — especially in the delegate race that ultimately decides the nominee.”
BATTLE FOR SECOND: Haley is pushing for a two-person race with Trump, saying Tuesday the next debate she participates in “will either be with Donald Trump or with Joe Biden.” New Hampshire’s primary is Jan. 23.
Meanwhile, DeSantis is facing tough questions about his path forward after he invested most of its resources in the Hawkeye State, The Hill’s Julia Manchester and Caroline Vakil report.
Related: Axelrod says Trump a ‘formidable’ candidate, Biden and campaign ‘need to get into gear’
DELEGATE MATH: Trump got 20 delegates from Iowa, while DeSantis got 8 and Haley got 7. The eventual GOP nominee needs 1,215 delegates.
Iowa’s meager delegate haul isn’t really the highlight of the caucuses. But it further winnowed the field, with Ramaswamy and Hutchinson both dropping out after Monday’s results.
Bookmark Decision Desk HQ/The Hill’s Election Center for the latest delegate counts, polls and more.
