TheCable

Ted Cruz, a frontline presidential aspirant of the Republican party, defeated billionaire Donald Trump in Iowa’s Republican nominating contest on Monday.

Hillary Clinton, former secretary of state, also won Bernie Sanders, a US senator, in the Democratic contest.

Sanders lost to Clinton by a narrow margin, making the contest the closest in Iowa Democratic caucus history.

Cruz, a conservative lawmaker from Texas, won the first state Republican contest in the 2016 race with 28 percent of the vote compared with 24 percent for businessman Trump.

His victory created a three-way competition with establishment of Marco Rubio.

Rubio, a senator from Florida, came in third with 23 percent, making a stronger-than-expected finish.

Cruz’s win and Rubio’s strong showing could dent the momentum for Trump, whose candidacy has alarmed the Republican establishment and been marked by controversies ranging from his calls to ban Muslims temporarily from entering the United States to promising to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexican border.

“Tonight is a victory for courageous conservatives across Iowa and all across this great nation,” Cruz said during a victory speech.

Though the feat humbled Trump, he congratulated Cruz and said he still expected to win the Republican nomination.

“I’m just honored,” Trump said.

Iowa has held the first contest in the country since the early 1970s, giving it extra weight in the electoral process that can translate into momentum for winning candidates.