US election: Trump dealt blow by Cruz in Iowa vote

Des Moines. Texas Senator Ted Cruz has won the Iowa Republican caucuses, the first vote to choose US presidential candidates.
“Tonight is a victory for courageous conservatives,” he declared, to great applause, as he railed against Washington, lobbyists and the media.
He took 28 per cent of the Republican vote, beating his rival, the frontrunner Donald Trump, and Marco Rubio.

Despite trailing Donald Trump in the polls for much of the last two weeks, Ted Cruz swept to a comfortable win in Iowa.
During his victory speech, he repeatedly thanked his grass-roots support - and for good reason. He and his campaign had invested considerable time and money to grind out a victory in this key state, and they were ultimately rewarded for their efforts.

Still a long way
With this result, Mr Cruz now has the momentum to survive what looks to be an uphill battle among the more moderate voters in New Hampshire next Tuesday, and then win over the deeply conservative, evangelical voters of Southern states that dominate the primary calendar in the following weeks.
It appears increasingly likely that a showdown for Mr Cruz looms on the horizon with the surprise third-place finisher in Iowa, Senator Marco Rubio. And Mr Trump - even if his supporters did not turn out in the numbers expected - will surely remain a factor.

“Iowa has sent notice that the Republican nominee and the next president of the United States will not be chosen by the media, will not be chosen by the Washington establishment,” said Mr Cruz.
Mr Trump congratulated the Texas senator and said he was “honoured” by the second-place finish.
Mr Rubio, who has struggled to gain support in recent months, has performed far better than expected, and finished in third place - just one percentage point behind Mr Trump.

How the US election works

In January 2017, the most powerful nation on earth will have a new leader, after a drawn out and expensive campaign - but how does a US presidential election work?
Technically, to run for US president, you only need to be “a natural born” US citizen, at least 35 years old, and have been a resident for 14 years. One person is nominated to represent the Republican and Democratic parties in the presidential election. A series of elections are held in every state and overseas territory, starting in February, which determine who becomes each party’s official presidential candidate. The winner of each collects a number of “delegates” - party members with the power to vote for that candidate at the party conventions held in July, where candidates are formally confirmed. The more state contests a candidate wins, the more delegates will be pledged to support them at the convention.