Iowa’s long, winding road to Election Day

DES MOINES - It has been a long road.

For Iowans who have been paying attention, Tuesday is the culmination of a presidential selection process nearly two years in the making.

Over those many months, Iowa performed its quadrennial duty of paring down a field of candidates during the first-in-the-nation caucuses. With no incumbent running, there was competition on both sides, and once again Iowa has played a role in the general election, albeit perhaps not as critical as in recent elections.

There were many momentous occasions in Iowa along the way. So before a new president is elected, here is a look back at the long campaign road through Iowa.

First steps

One could argue the 2016 presidential race began during the 2014 elections when some White House hopefuls visited Iowa to campaign for congressional candidates, hoping to help their own brands also.

But the first event with a truly presidential primary feel was the Freedom Summit, held Jan. 24, 2015, in Des Moines - 655 days before Election Day.

The event was hosted by U.S. Rep. Steve King. R-Iowa, and the conservative political group Citizens United. Seven Republicans who would eventually run for president plus a few others - those who attended surely remember Sarah Palin's rambling stemwinder - spoke.

Much of the talk afterward included praise for Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who soon took a lead in early polls on the GOP caucuses.

That pow moment

Donald Trump's now infamous line, which has been featured in political ads made by Hillary Clinton's campaign and groups that support her, was spoken in Iowa, at the Family Leader's event on July 15, 2015, on the Iowa State University campus in Ames.

Moderator Frank Luntz, a conservative public opinion expert, asked Trump about his verbal tussles with Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, and in doing so, he referred to McCain as 'a war hero.”

'He's not a war hero. He's a war hero because he was captured,” Trump said. 'I like the people who weren't captured.”

The comment was met with shock across the political landscape and swift rebuke from Republicans. In a backstage conversation recorded by Iowa Public Television, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who also spoke at the event, said the comment would signal the beginning of the end of Trump's campaign.

As it happened, Trump's comment was perhaps the first indicator of the strength of his support; it was the first prominent example of him saying something that seemed outlandish to many, but did not hurt him in the polls.

State Fair swarmed

Three of the biggest names in the caucuses - Trump, Clinton and Bernie Sanders - all visited the Iowa State Fair on the same day.

Most of the presidential candidates visited the State Fair, but Saturday, Aug. 15, 2015, became a spectacle.

Trump flew in on his helicopter, landing at a field, and allowed children to go for rides in it.

Clinton walked the grounds and visited the butter cow.

And when Sanders spoke at the Des Moines Register's Political Soapbox, the hundreds who came to listen formed a crowd that swallowed much of Grand Avenue.

'I think Bernie gets a lot more excitement, a lot more enthusiasm than anybody has in a long time,” Joyce Kopecky, a Des Moines native who lives in Omaha, Neb., said at the event. 'He's different than everybody else. He's not business as usual.”

Debates in Iowa

Both parties held one primary debate in Iowa.

The Democrats came to Iowa first, debating Nov. 14, 2015, at Drake University - the day after terrorist attacks in Paris killed 130 people.

The Republican candidates debated in Des Moines just four days before the Feb. 1 caucuses.

Well, most of the GOP candidates did. Trump chose to sit out the debate, which was hosted by Fox News, because he thought he had been treated unfairly by Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly. He instead held a campaign event in Des Moines at the same time.

It'S Clinton AND Cruz

The Feb. 1 caucuses brought to a close the first half of the presidential campaign in Iowa, and both parties made history in the process. Democrats had their closest-ever margin of victory, and Republicans had a record turnout.

Clinton edged Sanders by a mere 0.2 percentage points of state delegate equivalents as the Democrats turned out in numbers second only to 2008. Clinton did not claim victory until 2:30 a.m., and the state Democratic Party did not make the results official for days.

Rexas Sen. Ted Cruz edged Trump, 27.7 to 24.3 percent.

Trump, Clinton return

Once the general election campaign started in earnest after the national party conventions, polling made it clear Iowa would once again be a tossup state. And indications were Trump and Clinton, would make a strong play for the state.

Through the first three months, Trump made five trips to Iowa, including one in late July during the Democratic National Convention and another in early August.

'I think we're going to do very well,” Trump said at one of the events. 'The crowds are tremendous. The enthusiasm is incredible, so I think we're doing very well.”

Clinton did not return to Iowa until Aug. 10, but her campaign set up a robust operation here early in the general election.

Shortly before that first visit, Clinton's national political director Amanda Renteria said the Clinton campaign expected to be active and competitive in Iowa.

'We know this thing is going to be tight all the way to the end. I don't see any change in that,” Renteria said. 'We're under the assumption it will be close all the way through, and we're under the assumption that we've got to make sure that we're earning every single vote.”

Trail runs cold

After a strong start, the presidential campaign fizzled in Iowa, at least as far as candidate trips go.

Since those first handful of events, Trump had not yet been back. Meantime, he made double-digit appearances in other swing states including Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida and North Carolina.

Clinton had traveled to Iowa only three times. A fourth stop over the Labor Day weekend was in Illinois but in the Quad Cities, across the Mississippi River from Davenport. By comparison, Clinton had been to Ohio, Pennsylvania and North Carolina at least 10 times apiece and to Florida nearly 20 times.

Judging by candidate appearances, Iowa's six Electoral College votes had not been a top priority for either campaign.

Wave of surrogates

While the candidates had not spent much time in Iowa, some of their most well-known supporters did.

The Clinton campaign in particular unleashed a tsunami of surrogates on the state. While the crème de la crème - President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and Vice President Joe Biden - have not been here, the wave of Hillary Clinton surrogates has included her husband and former President Bill Clinton, her former primary foes Bernie Sanders and Martin O'Malley, running mate Tim Kaine and actors and musicians.

The Trump campaign has relied heavily upon running mate Mike Pence, sending the Indiana governor here eight times for a dozen events. Top supporters such as former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former primary opponent Ben Carson also have stumped for Trump.

Final push

With Election Day almost here, the campaigns have the slightest window to make one last impression in Iowa.

Trump rallied Sunday in Sioux City.

There's no word yet if Clinton will return.