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Less than four weeks before Iowans kick off the 2016 presidential contest with their Feb. 1 caucuses, the early road to the White House appears to be shaping up as a slippery and uncharted one for the Republican Party.

Ad Campaigns Set to Ramp Up

With only four weeks until the Iowa caucuses, the ad wars are escalating. Recent reporting gives us an idea of which issues candidates think will resonate the most with their voters, and which candidates they see as their main rivals – or at least the ones they think need to be taken down a notch. Several candidates lagging in the polls are using this strategy, hoping to break through in either Iowa or New Hampshire.

Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum’s new ad ... Read More >>

Huckabee begins ambitious campaign schedule

Mike Huckabee on Saturday began a grueling January campaign schedule that will include 150 events scattered across Iowa, a state he describes as “ground zero” in his bid to become president.

“We know that the key to winning it is grinding it out the old-fashioned way, county after county,” the Republican said after his third stop of the day.

Spin season starts as campaigns play expectations game

It was easy to miss if you weren’t paying close attention over the holiday season: Donald Trump actually admitted he might lose Iowa.

“If I come in second by 2 points, they’ll say ‘Ooh, this is a terrible defeat,’” he said last week during an appearance in Council Bluffs. “It’s not terrible.”

Trump leads ’16 GOP rankings one month from Iowa

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is the biggest upward mover in The Hill’s new rankings of the Republican presidential contenders, while Ben Carson has plunged.

Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas has also strengthened his standing in the two months since our last rankings while former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has seen none of the momentum he so badly needs.

Huckabee says he’ll drop out if he doesn’t place in the top three in Iowa

It’s Iowa or nothing for Mike Huckabee.

The former governor of Arkansas — who’s been a long-shot candidate relegated to the undercard primary debates during the 2016 presidential campaign — told Iowa radio host Simon Conway on Wednesday night, “If we can’t come within striking distance of the victory or win it, then I think we recognize that it’s going to be hard to take that onto the other states.”

It looks like a quiet Christmas on Iowa’s campaign trail

Iowans will have some political respite around Christmas: The nonstop presidential candidate blizzard is forecast to die down for three days straight.

We haven’t had a three-day candidate-free spree since Thanksgiving, The Des Moines Register’s candidate visit tracker shows.