Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has won the Iowa caucuses, edging out former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum by a mere eight votes. Iowa Republican party Chairman Matt Strawn announced the razor-thin margin early Wednesday morning from Des Moines. Strawn says Romney got 30,015 votes, while Santorum received 30,007 votes. Romney and Santorum were never separated by more than dozens of votes, and both sides were acting like it was a win before Strawn’s announcement. Santorum had a late surge from the bottom tier. Texas Congressman Ron Paul finished third, and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich finished fourth. Texas Gov. Rick Perry says he’ll return to Texas to reassess his bid after coming in fifth. And despite finishing even farther behind, Minnesota Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann said she’s still in the race.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The final votes that helped Mitt Romney win the Iowa caucuses arrived only after a county chairwoman was woken in a panic after midnight. Votes in the final precinct were added to the total early Wednesday morning, giving Romney a victory over Rick Santorum of just eight votes. It also made for a memorable night for Edith Pfeffer, the Clinton County Republican Party chairwoman. Pfeffer got a call from the Romney campaign asking what the figures were for the missing precinct because they hadn’t been recorded. Pfeffer said she gave the figures — 51 for Romney, 33 for Santorum — and went to bed. But she was soon awoken by a friend banging on her windows and was told she needed to report the figures to the state party.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has won most of the delegates in the Iowa Republican caucuses, edging former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum. Romney won a projected 13 delegates and Santorum won 12. Texas Rep. Ron Paul was shut out. Twenty-five delegates were at stake in Tuesday’s caucuses. The Associated Press calculates the number of national convention delegates won by candidates in each presidential primary or caucus, based on state and national party rules. Iowa Republicans use a multi-step process to elect national delegates, starting with local caucuses. In Iowa and other caucus states, the AP uses the results from local caucuses to calculate the number of national delegates each candidate will win, if the candidates maintain the same level of support throughout the process.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police agencies across Iowa are reporting no significant protests or disruptions at caucus sites, which Republican organizers had feared. Police in Des Moines and Cedar Falls say they had no calls related to Tuesday’s caucuses. Assistant Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Director Chari Paulson says no issues have been brought to her attention. The Republican Party of Iowa had warned the leaders of the 1,774 precincts that “disruption-minded individuals” might attempt to interfere with the voting. The party instructed precinct leaders to call police immediately and report incidents to the party. Occupy the Caucuses protesters insisted all along they had no plans to interfere with the voting. They encouraged some activists to show up and vote “no preference” but did not hold any major events Tuesday.

The Iowa State Patrol says a Perry man was cited Monday, following a non-injury rollover accident in Guthrie County. 36-year old Jose Fuster Rodriguez was cited for Failure to Maintain Control, Failure to Have a Valid License, and for having no proof of insurance. Officials say Rodriguez was traveling west on 180th Street about 2-miles east of Yale, when the 1995 Ford Aerostar van he was driving went onto the north shoulder of the road. Rodriguez over-corrected, causing the van to roll into the north ditch. The vehicle was declared a total loss. The accident happened at around 4:15-p.m., Monday.

The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office reports a northwest Iowa man was arrested on drug charges this (Tuesday) morning, following an incident which occurred at 260th Street and Falcon Avenue. Officials say 34-year old Nathan Allen Hines, of Mallard, was taken into custody at around 9-a.m.

Hines was charged with Possession of Methamphetamine/3rd offense, Possession of Marijuna/3rd offense, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He was also cited for Failure to Have a Valid Driver’s license. Hines was brought to the Audubon County Jail and held on a $5,000 bond.

Two men were arrested on drug charges Sunday, following a traffic stop on Interstate 80 near Council Bluffs.  Pottawattamie County Sheriff Jeff Danker told KJAN News Deputy Brian Miller stopped a Nissan for traveling over the speed limit on I-80 eastbound at the 5-mile marker at around 4:30-p.m., Sunday. After issuing the driver a warning citation, Miller spoke with the driver, but based upon what he saw in the vehicle, suspected the occupants could be involved in the trafficking of drugs.  Miller requested, but was denied permission to search the vehicle. He then used his K-9 partner “Francisco” to conduct a perimeter search of the vehicle. The dog reacted to the presence of narcotics in the vehicle, which provided reasonable suspicion and probable cause for Miller to search the vehicle. During the search, the Deputy discovered two garbage bags full of packaged marijuana, amounting to about 45-pounds, in the trunk of the vehicle.

The driver, 43-year old Tou Thao, of Eureka, CA, and his passenger, 32-year old Doua Thao, of Brooklyn Park, MN, were taken into custody. Tou Thao was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance with the Intent to Deliver/Marijuana, a Drug Tax Stamp violation, Prohibited Acts, and Excessive Speed. Doua Thao also faces a charge of PCS with the Intent to Deliver, Prohibited Acts, and a Tax Stamp violation. Both men were being held this (Tuesday) morning in the Pottawattamie County Jail, on $100,000 bond each.

Danker said Deputy Miller and his K-9 partner have been “Very Successful” in detecting suspicious drug activity along the Interstate, and “Francisco” has certainly “Earned his keep.”

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Department says three people were arrested on drug charges late last month. In their report issued today (Tuesday), authorities said 54-year old Dana DeMambro, of Grand Junction, CO, was arrested Dec. 24th, on charges of Possession of Marijuana and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. On Dec. 19th, 23-year old Mitchell Scott Blazek, of Crescent, was arrested on the same charges, and, 21-year old Katrina Marie Fester, of Council Bluffs, was arrested on the 19th, for Possession of Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Child Endangerment.

Officials said also, Jenny Bruce, of Hamburg, was transported to the Grape Community Hospital in Hamburg, after her vehicle was involved in a crash on Dec. 21st. Bruce was driving a 2004 Chevy Suburban on Washington Street in Hamburg, when the SUV began to swerve. The vehicle went through the intersection of E Street and hit a light pole, before it backed up and continued east. The SUV drove up onto a sidewalk and hit a  metal sign before finally coming to rest.

Charges have been filed or are pending, against an Omaha man and a Council Bluffs woman, following two separate accidents over the holiday weekend. Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Department spokesman, Sgt. Dwayne Riche, says 34-year old Jeremy Jackson, of Omaha, was transported to Creighton University Hospital in Omaha, following a crash Saturday night near Crescent. Riche says Jackson was traveling westbound on Coldwater Avenue at around 11:08-p.m., when he missed a stop sign at the intersection of Coldwater Avenue and Old Lincoln Highway. Jackson’s 2011 Toyota RAV-4 slammed into an embankment, and sustained $15,000 damage. Alcohol is believed to have played a role in the crash, and charges are pending the results of tests conducted following the crash.

The second accident happened Sunday afternoon, in Oakland. Sgt. Riche says at around 12:55-p.m., a 2005 Hyundai Sonata driven by 19-year old Ailish Andersen, of Council Bluffs, was traveling westbound on Highway 6 in Oakland and passing another vehicle, when her car went out of control. The vehicle entered the south ditch and rolled over, coming to rest on a barbed-wire fence. Andersen was charged with Failure to Maintain  Control, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Possession of a Controlled Substance/Marijuana for Personal Use, and Failure to wear a seat belt. An investigation into the incident continues, and additional charges are possible.

Police in Atlantic report today (Tuesday), the arrest Monday of 24-year old Ryan Juhl, of Atlantic. Juhl was taken into custody on a charge of Criminal Mischief. He was booked into the Cass County Jail and held, pending a court appearance.

And, the A-PD says no injuries were reported following an accident Friday morning on 2nd Street, in front of the Atlantic Bottling Company. Officials say a vehicle registered to Atlantic Bottling was legally parked in front of the business, when a vehicle driven by Michael Vanpatter, of Council Bluffs, clipped the right front corner of the parked vehicle, as Vanpatter was traveling westbound on 2nd Street.  Vanpatter was cited for striking an unattended vehicle.  Damage from the mishap, which occurred at around 7:30-a.m., Friday, amounted to $5,200.