Donald Trump, the former president of the United States, won the first Republican presidential contest for 2024 in Iowa. He did so despite the fact that he was facing a number of criminal charges.

Trump won over half of the votes. This will likely lead to a bitter and close election against Biden in November.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (45) finished second in Iowa behind Trump, beating out the former U.N. Nikki Haley (51), the 51-year-old ambassador, also failed to be the main opponent.

Trump, 77 years old, is the only former or current U.S. President to have been charged with criminal activities. He won an Iowa Republican contest by an unprecedented margin, which strengthens his argument that his nomination was a foregone outcome given his huge lead in national polls.

According to DecisionDeskHQ, Trump received 51% of the vote, DeSantis 20%, and Haley 19%, with 99% expected votes counted. This victory margin was far greater than the previous record set by Bob Dole, in 1988, of 12.8 percent points.

“THANK you IOWA! I love you all!” “THANK YOU IOWA, I LOVE YOU ALL!!

He hopes to speed up the months-long Republican nomination process by winning a string of early primaries and forcing out his opponents.

Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur and Trump supporter, ended his longshot bid for the presidency after receiving just 8% of votes on Monday.

On Tuesday, the candidates will move to New Hampshire. Next Tuesday, the state’s moderate Republicans will select their nominee. Polls show that Trump has a smaller advantage over Haley and DeSantis is far behind.

Trump’s performance at the Iowa Republican Convention showed that he will continue to be popular among Republican voters after January 6, 2021. He also faces 91 criminal charges, including for contesting 2020 elections, keeping classified documents even after leaving the White House and falsifying records regarding hush-money payments made to a pornstar.

Trump is using his legal troubles to raise money and increase his support, while he protests that he’s innocent and claims he’s the victim of “a witch hunt.”

Two-thirds (nearly) of Iowa caucus goers supported his call for electoral integrity following the 2020 presidential elections, saying that they didn’t think Biden beat Trump legitimately.

Over 60% of respondents said that Trump could still serve as President even if convicted.

According to Edison’s entrance poll, Trump won across the board: among men and women, among those who are very conservative, somewhat conservative and independent, among those with college degrees and those without, among those with and without.

He was able to capture a majority among Republicans who ranked immigration as the top concern. A majority also said that they were most concerned about the economy.

Jimmy Centers is a Republican strategist based in Iowa.

DeSantis, as well as Haley, have vowed to continue the fight, which will ensure that Trump’s opponents remain divided throughout the campaign.

DeSantis told his supporters in West Des Moines, Iowa, on Monday, “We have our ticket punched to leave Iowa!” He had bet a lot of money on a good performance in the state.

Haley stated Monday night that “when you look at our performance in New Hampshire, South Carolina, and beyond, I am confident to say that Iowa has made this Republican Primary a two person race.”

Trump has tried to give his campaign an air of certainty by skipping the five Republican debates so far, and mostly avoiding the county-by–county politicking most candidates engage in before the Iowa election.

Life-Threatening Cold

Iowans braved the extreme temperatures to gather in schools, community centres and other locations for the first-in the-nation Iowa caucus. The 2024 presidential campaign officially began after months of rallies and debates.

Rita Stone, a Trump supporter who attended the caucus of a West Des Moines High School, said: “Trump’s very self-centered, he is very arrogant, but he will get things done.”

Stone, like many voters, said that her main concern was the southern border of the United States with Mexico. She praised Trump’s efforts to build a fence when he served as president.

In Iowa, unlike a regular election the caucus requires that voters gather in small groups to cast their secret votes after listening to speeches by campaign representatives.

Edison predicted that there would only be 111,000 votes cast, far less than the record of 187,000 Republican caucus votes in 2016.

Iowa’s early position on the campaign calendar has always played a large role in presidential elections.

The winner of the Iowa Republican Caucuses didn’t go on to win the nomination for the three most recent competitive contests, in 2008 and 2012.