Trump, Cruz woo supporters as nomination race heats up

Trump, the billionaire New York developer, and Cruz, the Texas senator, were among 10 Republicans and three Democrats campaigning in Iowa for their parties’ nominations ahead of Monday’s caucus sessions but much of the focus was on the fight between Cruz and Trump.

The influential Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa poll released on Saturday showed a tight race, with Trump receiving 28 percent of the support of likely Iowa caucus-goers and Cruz 23 percent. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida was overwhelmingly the third choice, at 15 percent. In the Democratic competition, Hillary Clinton held a slight edge over Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, 45 percent to 42 percent. The margin of error for the poll was plus/minus 4 percent. 

On Monday, Iowans will gather in homes, gymnasiums, libraries, taverns and even grain elevators for caucuses to select their favourite for the Democratic and Republican presidential nominations. When they are finished, the race will take on a new dynamic and several candidates are expected to drop out altogether.“This is your time,” Cruz told a crowd of about 1,000 at a hotel ballroom. “This is the time for the men and women of Iowa to make a decision. We are inches away.” 

Across the state, Trump used stagecraft and blasted Cruz to enliven the crowd as he barnstormed through eastern Iowa. At the Dubuque airport, Trump’s plane, with his name emblazoned on the side, did a fly-by before he spoke to a crowd of about 400, small by Trump standards. 

On the Democratic side, Clinton and Sanders are locked in a close race as well.