AMES – Waterloo native Michelle Bachmann fired a resounding opening volley in the race for the Republican Party’s 2012 presidential nomination Saturday by besting her competitors in the much-watched Iowa GOP straw poll. “You’ve done it, Iowa,” a beaming Bachmann told her cheering supporters outside Hilton ...

AMES – The big day for Iowa Republicans and the presidential candidates who desperately want their support has arrived in Ames. The polls have opened and the GOP’s makeshift tent city is abuzz with activities as throngs of Republicans gather to hear speeches from the six ...

Texas U.S. Rep. Ron Paul has won the first-ever online Iowa straw poll, capturing a commanding 44 percent of the over 6,000 votes cast in an online poll sponsored by Iowa U.S. Rep. Tom Latham's campaign. The results of the two-week online poll were announced one ...

Who’s ahead in the race for the Republican presidential nomination will be clearer by the time the sun sets on the Iowa GOP Straw Poll today. However, as the sun rises over Ames, most of the horse-race polling on the GOP search for a challenger to ...

AMES – Saturday marks an important dress rehearsal for a cast of Republican presidential hopefuls working to land the starring role in a four-year White House run on the world’s biggest political stage. The first big test in the GOP auditioning process take place when thousands ...

DES MOINES – Iowa 4th District Rep. Tom Latham on Friday released the results of a two-week online poll of 2012 Republican presidential candidates his campaign offered at www.onlineiowastrawpoll.com. And the winner is … Texas Congressman Ron Paul, who captured 44 percent of the more than ...

Sarah Palin will make a stop at the Iowa State Fair Friday. "We accept with gratefulness an invitation to meet folks at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines this week," an announcement on Palin's political action committee site states. The full itinerary of the trip ...

DES MOINES – Social and evangelical conservatives within Iowa’s Republican Party have not ordained a clear standard-bearer heading into Saturday’s straw poll in Ames, but leaders within the powerful voting bloc are not ruling out a surprise in Ames given that a lot of unmeasured ...

OK, it’s time to think about how this straw poll in Ames is going to turn out. The big question is: At the end of the day, who’s No. 1? Not that it matters – at least not to those finishing No. 2 and lower in the ...

DES MOINES – In a still-developing 2012 Republican presidential field, this week’s straw poll in Ames is shaping up to be as much about who isn’t directly competing as it is about the half-dozen candidates who are investing time, money and organization in hopes of ...