William Petroski | Des Moines Register

Robert Scheer, robert.scheer@indystar.com

President Donald Trump was the near-unanimous winner Monday night of the 2020 Iowa Republican caucuses, receiving only token opposition from two challengers within his party.

Although the vast share of attention on this year’s Iowa caucuses was focused on Democratic candidates vying to oppose Trump, the Republican Party of Iowa still held traditional meetings statewide for nearly 1,700 precincts to allow the party faithful to have their voices heard.

What those Republicans said Monday: They are overwhelmingly behind the president.

With 95% of Iowa counties reporting Monday night, Trump had received almost 97% of the 26,484 GOP votes cast. The Associated Press called the caucus victory in Trump’s favor at 7:26 p.m, shortly after the Republican caucuses began.

Iowa caucuses: Live updates and details from caucus sites around the state

Trailing far behind Trump with slightly more than 1% each were two veteran GOP politicians seeking their party’s presidential nomination: Former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld and former U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh of Illinois, a conservative radio host.

View | 44 Photos

Iowa caucus: Donald Trump Jr. holds news conference before caucuses begin

Walsh was booed, and there were angry shouts of disagreement at Ankeny Republicans' precinct caucuses Monday night after he warned the GOP is losing women, persons of color and young people.

“If we aren’t careful, we are going to become a party of old white guys.” Walsh said.

Weld received a warmer reception from the crowd of 800 people at Northview Middle School. He promised good fiscal policies, free trade and respect for the rule of law.

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Photos: Donald Trump holds rally at Drake University in Des Moines

But the same Republicans in Ankeny cheered when Lara Trump, the president’s daughter-in-law and campaign strategist, spoke at the school and asked them: “Who is ready for four more years of Donald Trump?”

Lara Trump lauded the president’s record of job creation and other achievements, saying, “Finally we have a president standing up for our country and making sure America is the leader of the free world.”

In addition, Trump’s impeachment trial, which is expected to end this week with his acquittal by the U.S. Senate, appears to have done little or no damage to his reelection prospects among Republicans.

Kelsey Kremer, The Des Moines Register via USA TODAY Network

Iowa Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver, an Ankeny Republican who spoke at his community’s precinct caucuses, described November’s election as a fight for the soul of the country, adding, “President Trump has laid this out” as a choice between socialism or capitalism and free markets.

Surveys show Trump remains popular among conservatives. A November Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom Iowa Poll found 76% of registered Republicans who didn’t plan to attend the Democratic caucuses said they will definitely vote to reelect Trump.

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Trump carried Iowa by more than 9 percentage points in the 2016 general election against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, although Democratic nominee Barack Obama carried Iowa in both 2008 and 2012 as he won two presidential terms.