The race is “uncomfortably close,” according to a top Clinton ally in Iowa.
With about 97% of of the GOP vote in around 10:15 p.m. ET, Cruz was ahead of Trump 28% to 24%. Rubio was at 23%.
Clinton led Sanders 50% to 49% with about 80% counted. Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley plans to suspend his campaign, campaign sources told CNN, after not registering in the results.
On the Republican side of the race, Cruz’s narrow lead over Trump, while not conclusive.
Rumor has it some Democrats have switched parties in Iowa just to vote against Trump, if that has a major effect or not is yet to be known.
The Iowa caucuses have huge symbolic power, and while they don’t always predict who will be sworn in as the next president, they can offer a crucial boost to candidates who do well. They also spell doom for those who barely register and then do badly in the New Hampshire primary.
If Sanders loses Iowa, he still stands a good chance of beating Clinton in New Hampshire, the first primary state that borders his home state of Vermont. Yet the math to win the amount of delegates needed to clinch the nomination becomes very difficult for Sanders as the race moves to a belt of March 1 Southern states where Clinton has decisive leads powered by black voters.
