Budweiser and Chablis: The choice facing Republicans? By Jonathan Mann, CNN January 4, 2012 -- Updated 1045 GMT (1845 HKT) Mitt Romney (right) and Rick Santorum have emerged as the Republican frontrunners following the Iowa caucuses Republicans Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum each got 25 percent of the ballots cast in the Iowa Caucuses Analyst: The split we saw in Iowa between Santorum and Romney is a familiar one The long-running selection process culminates at a national party convention later in the year (CNN) -- America's Republicans held their first actual vote for a presidential candidate this week, setting the table for what may now be a choice between two men as different as beer and wine. "This is a Budweiser Republican who's going to contrast with a Chablis Republican," said party strategist and CNN analyst Alex Castellanos. Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum each got 25 percent of the ballots cast in the Iowa caucuses, an evening of votes across that small mid-western state which start the long sequence of state-by-state elections known as the "primaries." The process culminates at a national party convention later in the year that will formally choose the Republican nominee to take on Barack Obama in the presidential election in November. Romney was declared the winner in Iowa by a margin of just 8 votes, out of more than 122,000 cast -- the closest caucus result that Iowa's ever had. To be fair, he isn't really a Chablis man; he's a Mormon, whose faith prohibits strong drink. But as a former state governor and millionaire corporate executive whose father was also a state governor and millionaire corporate executive, Romney has come to represent the traditional elite of the Republican Party. His campaign has benefited from enormous financial support from party donors. By contrast, Santorum stresses his own heritage as the grandson of a coal miner and the son of an Italian immigrant. Until his surprise success in Iowa, he ran a thread-bare campaign with a tiny staff and modest donations. "This is a Budweiser Republican who's going to contrast with a Chablis Republican" Alex Castellanos, CNN political analyst "The split we saw in Iowa between Santorum and Romney is a familiar one," said analyst Bill Schneider. Romney won what I call the country club conservatives -- the wealthier, the older, the more prosperous, established conservatives in the Republican Party, who usually win the nomination. Rick Santorum won the evangelical voters, the hard-core conservatives who see themselves as the anti-establishment. The two men aren't the only ones left in the race. It continues with several other candidates competing as well in a primary in the state of New Hampshire next week and then many more primaries in the months to come. But Romney has been so polished and well-prepared that the Republicans have wondered if anyone could stop him. Now, it seems they have a new alternative they might pour and consider. An often overlooked place of farms and friendly towns is, for a fleeting moment, the epicenter of U.S. politics. The place is Iowa. The question is Why-owa? January 4, 2012 -- Updated 0934 GMT (1734 HKT) The latest wave of CNN Iowa entrance polls shows Ron Paul, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum in a virtual tie. The polls show Newt Gingrich in fourth. December 28, 2011 -- Updated 1940 GMT (0340 HKT) Forget the ads, the weather, and all those back-and-forth attacks -- the Republican caucuses in Iowa will come down to thousands of small pieces of paper. January 3, 2012 -- Updated 1546 GMT (2346 HKT) This bunch of challengers has done a better job of telling us why Obama should not be re-elected than telling us why they would be any better, TZ Granderson says. January 3, 2012 -- Updated 2333 GMT (0733 HKT) Some Democrats who turned out for Sen. Barack Obama in 2008 say they are so disillusioned that they might not vote at all in 2012. January 3, 2012 -- Updated 0747 GMT (1547 HKT) The three GOP presidential candidates at the top of Iowa polls are taking aim at one another ahead of Tuesday's Iowa caucuses. January 2, 2012 -- Updated 1657 GMT (0057 HKT) Negative ads in the Iowa caucuses are just the tip of the iceberg. In 2012 negative ads are a virtual must-have component of every political campaign. January 2, 2012 -- Updated 1650 GMT (0050 HKT) For all the polls and pundits, Iowa seems primed to reward the candidates who did things the old-fashioned way. A frequently overlooked place of farms, friendly towns and relatively few people is, for now, the epicenter of U.S. politics. December 31, 2011 -- Updated 1703 GMT (0103 HKT) In Iowa, candidates find die-hard supporters who value personal relationships with them and who give new meaning to going the extra mile. December 28, 2011 -- Updated 2044 GMT (0444 HKT) As you're being inundated with wall-to-wall coverage of the Iowa caucuses this week, keep the following number in mind: zero. December 30, 2011 -- Updated 1947 GMT (0347 HKT) Iowans have found a bone to pick with a University of Iowa professor who questioned the state's role in the presidential nominating process.