When Are The 2016 Iowa Caucuses?

The Iowa Caucuses are quickly approaching, as the first votes will (finally!) be cast in the 2016 presidential election.

The Iowa Caucuses will be held February 1, 2016, at 7 p.m. CT, signaling the official beginning of presidential voting season. Both the Democratic and Republican caucuses will take place that Monday.

The last Iowa Caucuses for the Republican nomination in 2012 were the closest in history, highlighted by late-night confusion in Clinton County, where only a handful of votes would decide who won the key early voting state.

This nomination season has seen its fair share of twists, turns and captivating storylines, none more so than the entrance of real estate mogul Donald Trump into the race.

An afterthought when he entered the race, Trump has surged in polling, currently leading the GOP field in both the national race and in Iowa, according to a RealClearPolitics aggregate of major polls.

Trump held a 5.2 percent lead Monday over Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, his primary challenger, in Iowa polling aggregates. Cruz and Trump have been one and two in the race in Iowa since November.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio was polling third, more than 15 points behind Cruz, followed by neurosurgeon Ben Carson. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee all are polling less than 5 percent in Iowa.

On the Democratic side, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hasn’t trailed in the polls since they have been taken, but Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has surged on the strength of a grassroots campaign driven by young voters, challenging her front-runner status and matching her in Iowa polling twice so far.

Sanders and Clinton were in a virtual tie in Iowa as late as January 12, the RealClearPolitics aggregate showed. But Clinton had regained her lead in recent days, following a strong showing at the latest Democratic Presidential debate.

Former Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley sat in a distant third place, 36 percentage points behind Sanders.