What's Going On Around The World Today

BuzzFeed - Latest 2016-02-02

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Ted Cruz came out on top on the Republican side. And Democrat Hillary Clinton (very) narrowly defeated Bernie Sanders.

Let’s start with the Republicans: Ted Cruz solidly defeated Donald Trump and Marco Rubio in the Iowa caucuses on Monday evening, defying polls going into the contest that showed Trump with a sizeable lead, BuzzFeed News reports.

Cruz won with 28% of the vote, Trump came in second with 24%, and Rubio came in third with 23%. “The close race illustrated just how turbulent the Republican race may be,” the New York Times writes.

Cruz’ victory in Iowa, bolstered by support from evangelical Christians, is a major blow to Trump, who was perceived as the frontrunner in Iowa for much of the past seven months.

“Success is always a self-perpetuating force in presidential campaigns — hence the endless pundit chatter about ‘momentum’ — but for Trump, it is closer to the central rationale of his candidacy,” BuzzFeed News political writer McKay Coppins reports from West Des Moines.

And Rubio did much better than expected, “almost edging out Trump for a second-place finish,” BuzzFeed News writes.

It’s unclear if Cruz will be able to copy yesterday’s success in other parts of the country in subsequent votes in the months to come. Cruz, who has been a U.S. Senator representing Texas since 2013, isn’t popular within his own party. “He’s helped shut down the federal government. He’s wooed power brokers on the religious right. And he’s made a remarkable amount of enemies in the capital,” Vox writes.

Brendan Hoffman / Getty Images

Now, on the Democratic side: The race between Clinton and Sanders was at one point too close to call, with Clinton narrowly winning 49.9% of the vote, compared to Sanders’ 49.6%. The tight race wasn’t expected.

“What Iowa has begun tonight is a political revolution,” Sanders said after the votes had been cast.

“The close results were deeply unnerving to Mrs. Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, as well as her advisers,” the New York Times writes. Still, in her speech on Monday night Clinton said she was relieved.

“So as I stand here tonight, breathing a big sigh of relief — thank you, Iowa — I want you to know, I will keep doing what I have done my entire life,” Clinton said. “I will keep standing up for you, I will keep fighting for you, I will always work to achieve the America that I believe in, where the premise of that dream that we hold out to our children and our grandchildren never fades but inspires generations to come.”

Clinton’s speech also inadvertently introduced this dancing guy covered in stickers to the world. Really.

The candidates will probably not be able to relax much, because they’re getting ready for next week’s New Hampshire primary, which will be held on Tuesday Feb. 9.

Patrick Semansky / AP Photo

Other Iowa stuff.

  • The race between Clinton and Sanders was so close that in some precincts a coin flip (yes, a coin flip) was used to decide which candidate would win a county delegate. The state’s official rules for Democratic caucuses allow for a coin flip to decide a winner in case of a tie. (A

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Date tagged:

02/02/2016, 10:31

Date published:

02/02/2016, 10:31