With two caucuses wrapped up, it seems that the competition is getting more fierce for the aspiring candidates in the 2016 election. False attack ads, questions of character and even threats to sue one another are underway as the pressure rises and the drama follows. If you haven't stayed updated, here's what you missed.
Iowa
The Iowa caucus was held on February 1. After skipping out on the last GOP debate before the caucus, Donald Trump faltered in the results and lost to Ted Cruz, who took a 27-point lead with Trump landing in second place for the first time in a long time since his announcement that he would be running. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders remained neck and neck, but Clinton came out on top by only a slight margin of 0.3%. O'Malley ended his campaign, leaving only two Democratic candidates left in the race.
New Hampshire
On February 6, another caucus and GOP debate was held in Goffstown, New Hampshire. While Senator Marco Rubio was on a high from coming in second from the debate in Iowa, an attack from New Jersey Governor Chris Christie about Rubio's "rehearsed answers" landed Rubio in the No. 5 spot behind the competition that had fallen behind in the polls in the recent weeks. Sanders beat Hillary by a landslide, winning the younger voters, and even women, too. - --
False Ads
The Cruz campaign releases an attack ad that sparks controversy between him and Trump. The ad, which featured young schoolchildren, tackled the issue of eminent domain and was clearly a stab at billionaire Trump. Trump punched back stating on Twitter that, "If @TedCruz doesn't clean up his act, stop cheating & doing negative ads, I have standing to sue him for not being a natural born citizen." With the feud between Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly still heated enough to keep him from debating on stage where she is moderating, so this fight between him and Cruz is bound to get good.
Candidates Dropping
Like flies. Even after his statement against Rubio in the last debates sparked a small flame in his candidacy, Chris Christie decided to drop out of the race, along with GOP candidate Carly Fiorina. With Trump back in the lead and Cruz a close follow, candidates John Kasich, Jeb Bush, and Marco Rubio fight for third.
So, what's to come? The next GOP debate will be held on Thursday, February 25, in Houston, Texas, while the next Democratic debate will not be until Sunday, March 6, in Flint, MI. South Carolina and Nevada will be the next caucuses held, and with rumors floating around about new potential candidates, it's sure to be an interesting next few weeks as the 2016 race for the presidency develops.
