The Republican White House race sharpened yesterday as moderate Minnesota ex-governor Tim Pawlenty bowed out following Tea Party darling Michele Bachmann’s victory in the Iowa straw poll.

Ms Bachmann now faces a stiff challenge from former Massachusetts governor and long-time front-runner Mitt Romney, considered more moderate, and from Rick Perry, who has served as Texas governor for over a decade and can claim to have created jobs despite the economic slowdown.

Mr Pawlenty’s decision came after his distant third-place showing in the poll and Mr Perry’s entry into the race as a fiscal and social conservative champion.

The Ames Straw Poll is unscientific and nonbinding but widely seen as an indicator of who is best positioned to win the first batch of nominating contests early next year.

Mr Pawlenty, who had campaigned hard in Iowa, told ABC television’s This Week that his message “didn’t get the kind of traction or lift that we needed and hoped for” going into the poll.

He finished with a disappointing 2,293 votes in the Ames Straw Poll, over 2,500 votes behind Ms Bachmann and close second-place ­finisher Representative Ron Paul, a small government advocate who also has strong Tea Party support.

The low-key Pawlenty – derided by detractors as bland – was little known outside of Minnesota despite serving two terms as Republican governor of a largely Democratic state.

Ms Bachmann, also appearing on This Week, said her win was a “big message sent to Washington” by Americans frustrated with the slow pace of economic recovery and stubbornly high unemployment under President Barack Obama.