Republican rivals in last-ditch bid to cut Trump’s big lead in frozen Iowa

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Donald Trump and his Republican rivals for president battled to lock up support from Iowa voters over the weekend, in a final burst of campaigning across the Midwestern state before the party’s caucuses launch the 2024 race for the White House.

The former US president is aiming to translate an overwhelming polling lead among Iowa Republicans into a commanding victory on Monday night that would ease his path to the party’s nomination to face off against Joe Biden in the November general election.

Nikki Haley has emerged as Trump’s top Republican rival after moving into second place in Iowa over the past week. The former US ambassador to the UN is trying to narrow the gap with the former president to better position herself for the second contest of the nomination fight, to be held in New Hampshire later this month.

Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor, has slid into third place in Iowa and is hoping to breathe new life into his campaign. If he fares poorly in the Midwestern state he will face pressure to drop out.

The last weekend of campaigning in Iowa was disrupted by a blizzard that swept through the state on Friday and Saturday. Frigid temperatures on Sunday were expected to continue into the early part of the week, threatening voter turnout.

A widely followed poll published by the Des Moines Register along with NBC News on Saturday night showed 48 per cent of Iowa voters supported Trump, while 20 per cent backed Haley and 16 per cent picked DeSantis. Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy trailed in a distant fourth place, with 8 points.

According to the survey, Trump is leading the field with evangelical Christian voters, a big Republican voting bloc in the state, as well as first time caucus-goers.

Haley is performing…