The fight for Iowa gets under way

The US state of Iowa is best known for kicking off America's presidential nominating contest every four years, but
this election cycle, the Midwestern state is in the spotlight as a key battleground in the November polls.

To further demonstrate the important role the state stands to play in the upcoming ballots, Barack Obama, the current US president, and Paul Ryan, the newly-named vice presidential pick of Mitt Romney, Obama's presumed rival, both arrived in the Hawkeye state.

Al Jazeera's Kimberly Halkett reports from Des Moines.