The Republican campaign for the U.S. presidential elections has drawn its first blood. A mere 15 months ahead of the actual ballot, the party hopefuls descended upon Ames, Iowa, to participate in an unofficial straw poll that has no standing in the nomination process, which begins next February. Originally, the Ames vote was designed to raise money for the state Republican Party. It still does; this year, it will gross nearly $500,000. But the party's success only highlights the way money dominates the election process.

Only Iowa residents can participate in the straw poll. They pay $25 for the privilege of voting. That means that the poll is a test of a candidate's organization. Can it get the voters out? That, in turn, is another way of asking if a candidate has the financial wherewithal to pay the fee and other enticements (such as lunch) to lure supporters to Ames for a weekend.

Since deep pockets are the key to success, the Ames results should come as no surprise. Texas Gov. George Bush, the GOP front-runner who has raised a stunning $37 million thus far, came in first, with 31 percent of the vote. Mr. Steve Forbes, the independently wealthy publisher, came in second with 21 percent. By one estimate, the two men probably spent between $2 million and $3 million for their votes.

The big winner in the ballot was Mrs. Elizabeth Dole, the former Cabinet member and wife of the 1996 Republican nominee, Mr. Robert Dole. She took 14 percent of the vote, establishing herself as a force to be reckoned with. Had she come in fifth or sixth, she would have been likely to drop out. Most insiders say Mrs. Dole is not really aiming for the presidency because she knows that the Republican Party is not yet ready to put a woman on the top of the ticket. Instead, she is running for the vice president's post.

For former Tennessee Gov. Lamar Alexander, the Ames vote was the end of the line. Among all the contenders, Mr. Alexander spent the most time in Iowa, and even received support from a former governor. Yet, that could earn him no better than a sixth-place finish among nine contenders. Monday, Mr. Alexander withdrew from the race. He has bowed to the inevitable, acknowledging that he cannot hope to compete with the two leading candidates' bankrolls.

Although the Bush win was expected, the margin of victory leaves hope for the remaining contenders. The governor only won 30 percent of the Ames vote; that is hardly the comfortable margin that was expected of a front-runner with an immense war chest. Mr. Forbes, who finished with two-thirds of the favorite's votes, will take comfort from the fact that 70 percent of participants voted for someone other than Mr. Bush. Then there is the gap between Mr. Bush's national approval ratings -- between 55 and 60 percent -- and his Ames showing. For conservatives like Mr. Pat Buchanan, former Vice President Dan Quayle and activist Gary Bauer, that means the front-runner is vulnerable. If the party is offered a real alternative and the GOP hardcore can be rallied, then the race is potentially wide open.

Such optimism may seem reckless when looking at the two front-runners' bank accounts, but momentum is critical now. If a candidate looks invincible, or his nomination seems inevitable, it will become a self-fulfilling prophecy. For Mr. Bush's opponents, winning is not the most important thing. They merely want to show that the front-runner is beatable.

Mr. Bush walks a fine line. He must look like a winner to keep the money flowing; not only to finance his campaign, but to deprive his opponents of funds. At the same time, he has to dampen expectations so that a 30-percent win does not look like a loss. In the wake of the Ames poll, the challengers' strategy is becoming clearer. They aim to force Mr. Bush to take a stand on key issues, such as abortion, gun control and tax cuts, in the hope that he will antagonize potential supporters in the process. Messrs. Buchanan, Quayle and Bauer are hoping that Mr. Bush will reveal himself to be too middle of the road for the GOP faithful -- who, incidentally, can be relied upon to vote in the primaries and in the election.

Forcing Mr. Bush to define his positions is not a bad thing. There are already signs that he is less well-informed than one would expect of a presidential front-runner. He has made several embarrassing gaffes in public statements and revealed an adolescent side in his profile in Talk magazine. As the current occupant of the White House has made clear, character issues are critical ones in an election. The danger in U.S. politics is that money is becoming the only issue that matters.