Watch the candidates' speeches: Obama, Clinton, Huckabee

Barack Obama stormed to victory in the Iowa caucuses last night, pushing Hillary Clinton into third place in the opening contest of the 2008 Democratic presidential race which he declared had been a "defining moment in history" for America.

This morning he arrives in New Hampshire ahead of Tuesday's primary election where another win could provide him with the momentum needed to propel him all the way to the White House.

In Iowa last night Mr Obama won 38 per cent of elected delegates after a record turnout boosted by independent and young idealistic voters. Mrs Clinton secured 29 per cent of delegates, fractionally behind John Edwards.

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She has consistently led national opinion polls for the Democratic nomination and in a concession speech last night insisted she was ready for the next stage of a contest, saying she was "a candidate who will be ready to go the distance".

Mr Edwards vowed to carry his populist message on to New Hampshire but knows Mr Obama has now confirmed himself as the chief, if not only challenger, to Mrs Clinton. Two Democratic candidates, Joe Biden and Chris Dodd later announced they were dropping out of the race after winning just 1 per cent of delegates between them.

The Republican race saw Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor who was being written off as a no hope candidate as recently as October, winning over second placed Mitt Romney by a margin of 34 to 25 per cent.

Mr Romney, who has poured millions of dollars form his own business fortune into his bid to become America's first Mormon president, outspent Mr Huckabee by 15 to one in Iowa and had better organisation. But it was Mr Huckabee, an ordained Baptist minister, who carried the day with strong support from religious conservatives who represent 40 per cent of the Republican vote in this mid-Western state.

"Tonight, I love Iowa a whole lot," said Mr Huckabee at his victory rally. Standing in front of Chuck Norris, the former world karate champion and Hollywood action hero who has become a significant asset to his campaign, he claimed his victory proved that "the message is more important than the purse".

Although Mr Huckabee is trailing in polls for among the more secular New Hampshire electorate – and is expected to turn his sights on the January 16 South Carolina primary – Mr Romney is facing a ferocious challenge from the resurgent John McCain next Tuesday.

There is now a growing prospect of the Republican fight becoming protracted even beyond February 5 when many of the bigger states vote.

Rudy Giuliani, who came a humiliating sixth in Iowa, is hoping to revive his campaign in Florida on January 29. Fred Thompson, who narrowly held on to third place over Mr McCain last night, may try to hang on for better times in his native South. Maverick Ron Paul, who won 10 per cent last night, hopes to do even better in New Hampshire where a significant portion of voters are libertarians.

But it was Mr Obama, 46, who will attract most attention for his victory last night. He has been drawing huge and enthusiastic crowds in Iowa in recent months with his message of hope and change. He is the first black man to stand a credible chance of winning the White House and, at a tumultuous victory party last night, predicted that he could become a president who reunited America as "one people, one nation" if New Hampshire backed him in the same way that Iowa had.

"They said this day would never come. They said our sights were set too high. But on this January night, on this defining moment in history, you have done what the cynics said we couldn't do. You did what the state of New Hampshire can do in five days."

"I'll be a president that ends this war in Iraq and finally brings our troops home, who restores our moral standing, who understands that 9/11 is not a way a way to scare up votes but a challenge that should unite America and the world against the common threats of the 21st Century," he said.

Mr Obama won a stunning across-the-board victory, in the major cities, in conservative western Iowa, and down the Mississippi River in the east of the state. Exit polls suggested he had even got support form more women voters than Mrs Clinton - who is trying to be American's first female president.

"Hope is the bedrock of this nation, the belief that our destiny will not be written for us but by us, by all those men and women who are not content to settle for the world as it is but who have the courage to remake the world as it should be," he said at his victory rally.

Mrs Clinton, 60, had argued that her experience made her the more qualified candidate to bring about change in America. In a low-key speech last night where she was flanked by her husband and former president, Bill Clinton, as well as their daughter, Chelsea, she said: "We know we're going to get up tomorrow and try as hard as we can to get the message out about what is at stake in this election."

Aides to Mr Obama are predicting that she will launch a bitterly negative campaign against him in the coming days. Mr Clinton told reporters shortly before the vote that he had suffered set-backs in his own bid for the White House 16 years ago. "I didn’t win a race until I got to Georgia,” he said. “You just got to keep going. It is a long process.”

Democrats (per cent of the vote)

Barack Obama: 37.6

John Edwards: 29.8

Hillary Clinton 29.5

Bill Richardson 2.1

Joe Biden 0.9

Chris Dodd 0.02

(final result)

Republicans

Mike Huckabee 34.3

Mitt Romney 25.3

Fred Thompson 13.4

John McCain 13.1

Ron Paul 10

Rudy Giuliani 3.5

Duncan Hunter 0.4

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