Five numbers that explain the Iowa caucus results

Former President Trump defeated Republican rivals Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the Iowa caucuses on Monday, the kickoff state where the race is rapidly moving toward next week's New Hampshire primary. He won easily.

Less than an hour after caucus voting began in the Hawkeye State, the outlet called the race for Trump. Votes are still being counted, but as of the latest count, Trump appears poised to win by a 30 percentage point margin.

But Trump's margin of victory is just one of the remarkable numbers from the first ballot of the 2024 election..

Here's a look at the numbers for Iowa's Republican caucuses:

1. Trump percentage: 51 percent

As of 12:25 a.m. Eastern Time, Trump had won 51% of the vote, with approximately 109,000 votes counted by the Policy Desk Headquarters.

The former president has a nearly 30-point lead over his closest challenger, with DeSantis expected to come in second and Haley third, according to Decision Desk Headquarters.

Mr. Trump entered the Iowa caucuses with a double-digit lead over his rivals in polls, and his win in the Hawkeye State further boosted his momentum heading into next week's first Republican primary in New Hampshire.

That doesn't bode well for non-Trump candidates who have been trying for months to cut into Trump's lead.

Trump won the 2016 and 2020 Iowa general elections, but most notably lost to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the 2016 Iowa caucuses, then won New Hampshire and secured the nomination. Obtained.

The former president predicted early Monday that his campaign would have a “tremendous night” in Iowa.

2. Race start time: 30 minutes

Media outlets first declared Trump the winner of the caucuses only about 30 minutes after the caucuses began in Iowa. The Associated Press predicted Trump the winner at 8:31 p.m., and other news organizations quickly followed suit.

The Hill's partner, Decision Desk HQ, alerted the race approximately 15 minutes later at 8:46 p.m.

The calls arrived relatively soon after voting began, and some people had not yet cast their votes. CNN anchor Jake Tapper pointed out the speed of the call, saying “This is the earliest I can remember saying something like that,” he said after announcing CNN's prediction.

Trump had a wide lead in opinion polls and admissions polls leading up to the caucuses, and early results before the race was even called seemed to point to an easy victory for Trump. Ta. Tapper said CNN may base its predictions on Trump's “vast” lead in admissions polls and first-round voting.

But early calls drew criticism for making predictions when many votes had yet to be cast. Caucus times vary, with some producing results in 30 minutes and others taking several hours.

The reaction from the DeSantis campaign was particularly strong, with campaign spokesman Andrew Romeo calling it “election interference.”

“It is completely outrageous that the media would call a campaign and participate in election interference before tens of thousands of Iowans have cast their votes. The media is on President Trump’s side, and this is the most “It's a terrible example,” he said.

Matt Woking, strategic communications director for Never Back Down, a pro-DeSantis super PAC, tweeted that multiple news outlets said: policy Opposed to calling the race before voting closes.

3. Difference between 2nd and 3rd place: 2 points

Ahead of Monday night's caucuses, observers said they would focus on the difference between first, second and third place in Iowa as a signal of candidate strength as the election cycle heats up.

At the time of publication, DeSantis was projected to secure the No. 2 spot in the Hawkeye State, with Haley taking the No. 3 spot.

The difference between DeSantis and Haley was just 2.1 percentage points, 21.2 to 19.1, respectively, according to Decision Desk Headquarters at the time of publication.

This close race probably bodes well for Haley. Haley is polling well ahead of DeSantis in New Hampshire, which votes eight days after Iowa.

And the Florida governor has made Iowa a top priority for his campaign, likely to be a stumbling block to DeSantis' momentum. Mr. DeSantis met his goal of visiting all 99 counties in the state and had a higher approval rating in Iowa than in any other state with early voting.

Having spent a lot of time in Iowa, he likely has work to do in the coming years to build the campaign infrastructure to seriously compete in the next state.

Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson finished in the top three, which observers have long said could spell doom for their campaigns. Ramaswamy withdrew from the race and endorsed Trump at a press conference Monday night.

4. Number of voters: 110,000

Iowans are known for their enthusiasm for the quadrennial party caucuses, and regularly turn out in large numbers to vote for the first time in the nation. But historically bad weather has been an obstacle for voters accustomed to cold January weather.

Iowa Republican Party Chairman Jeff Kaufman expressed optimism about turnout. tell The Hill said it felt “good” to participate, considering the roads had been plowed and the snow had stopped. He did not expect the number to reach a record high of nearly 187,000, but said earlier in the day that he felt “good about where we are.”

Decision Desk headquarters predicted that about 110,000 voters would participate in the caucuses. This number is a notable decrease from the record-setting 2016 contest, but only slightly lower than the approximately 120,000 people who voted in 2012 and 2008, respectively.

“After a blizzard hit our state a few days ago, Iowans braved record low temperatures, talked with people in their communities about the future of our country, and worked hard to make the most of our nation,” Kaufman said in a statement toward the end of the night. participated in grassroots democracy.”

5. Wind resistance temperature: 50 degrees

During Monday's caucuses, Iowans faced subzero temperatures and severe winter weather, the National Weather Service announced. put Wind chills in Des Moines can reach minus 30 degrees.

In the days leading up to the election, candidates urged supporters to brave the snow to attend caucuses, as some campaign plans were complicated. The party was forced to cancel several in-person events ahead of the caucus and instead hold them virtually.

“Brave the cold and come out and cheer me on in the Iowa caucuses. There's never been a better time for your vote to make a difference than tonight.” DeSantis Said Supporters before voting begins.

Ramaswami called His Iowa supporters urged him to “brave the cold to save our country.”

Temperatures have risen in Des Moines. Soaked The Iowa caucuses began in the state's precincts as temperatures dropped to -4 degrees Celsius around 8 p.m. ET.

According to the city, the maximum temperature on Monday was just 1 degree Celsius. weather forecast channel and accuweather.