Trump mines data trove in Iowa to avoid mistakes of 2016 loss

Volunteers gather at the Donald Trump 2024 campaign headquarters in Iowa ahead of a door-knocking event in Urbandale, Iowa, U.S., October 14, 2023. REUTERS/Nathan Layne

DES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) - At first glance, the series of Donald Trump rallies in Iowa this month looked a lot like the events he held during his 2016 presidential campaign when he narrowly lost the state: hundreds of fervent supporters cheering on a combative and grievance-filled stump speech.

But that's where the similarities end. In contrast to 2016, when Trump was out-organized by rival Senator Ted Cruz and lost the first Republican presidential nominating contest in Iowa, he has established a much-more sophisticated ground game aimed at hoovering up and analyzing voter data to turn it into votes.