Barack Obama swept away any sense of inevitability about Hillary Clinton’s march to the White House on Thursday night, scoring an upset victory in the Iowa caucuses that dramatically alters the Democratic race.

Republican voters also rejected the established order, awarding a convincing victory to Mike Huckabee, the Baptist preacher who until two months ago was a virtual unknown outside his native Arkansas.

The results were especially cruel for Clinton who was relegated to third place behind John Edwards. It was a dramatic setback for a candidate once seen in control of a formidable political machine, and could damage her prospects in New Hampshire where the race has tightened in recent days.

In a jubilant victory party for supporters, Obama said he had demonstrated to cynics that there was a new way of doing politics.

“We came together as Democrats, as Republicans and as Independents to stand up and say: we are one nation, we are one people and our time for change has come.”

Huckabee also benefited from a new method of organisation. He relied on a network of evangelical Christian voters to power to his first place finish over Mitt Romney, who had outspent Huckabee in the state nearly 20 to one.

With all of the 1,781 precincts reporting, Obama had 37.6 per cent of the vote, a clear lead over Edwards with 29.8 per cent and Clinton on 29.5 per cent.

The Obama campaign was the most obvious beneficiary of the surge in turnout, attracting thousands of young and first-time caucus-goers.

Black concerns

Rick Wade, a senior adviser to the Obama campaign, said the Iowa result would assuage blacks’ fears that whites are unwilling to elect a black president. “This answers the question whether white voters will support him,” he said. “That is a concern among some African Americans.”

On the Republican side, Huckabee had captured 34 per cent of the vote. Mitt Romney, despite spending much of the year campaigning in Iowa, was on 25 per cent. However, Romney said he expected to even the score in New Hampshire primary on Tuesday.

“This is obviously a bit like a baseball game,” he told reporters. “First inning in, well it’s a 50-inning ballgame. I’m gonna keep on battling all the way and anticipate I get the nomination when it’s all said and done, but, you know, congratulations for the first round to Mike, and we’ll go on to New Hampshire.”

Hillary ahead

Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican John McCain hold leads in New Hampshire four days before the state’s presidential nominating contest, according to a Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll released on Friday. The poll was taken before Iowa’s caucuses on Thursday.