A national Fox News poll released late Wednesday found that businessman Herman Cain has surged to the front of the pack of Republican presidential candidates while President Barack Obama is treading water with the voters.
Cain leads the field of Republican hopefuls with 24 percent followed by former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts in second with 20 percent. Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich takes third with 12 percent followed by two Texans -- Gov. Rick Perry with 10 percent and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul with 9 percent.
The rest of the field lags behind. U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania are knotted together in sixth place with 3 percent apiece. Four candidates -- former Gov. Jon Huntsman of Utah, former Gov. Gary Johnson of New Mexico, activist Fred Karger and former Gov. Buddy Roemer of Louisiana -- garner less than 1 percent.
Cain continues to build momentum in the polls. In a Fox News poll taken at the end of August, Cain garnered 6 percent and rose up to 17 percent in a Fox News poll taken in September. While Cain surges and Romney stays in place, Perry continues to sink. He took 29 percent in the August poll and 19 percent in the September one.
The poll also found that economic issues are foremost in the minds of Republican primary voters. 76 percent of Republican primary voters said economic issues are their top concern going into the 2012 election while 8 percent said national security. Only 6 percent said social issues.
The same poll found Americans are divided on appraising Obamas performance in office. While 48 percent of those surveyed approve of his job in the White House, the same percentage disapprove of his performance in office. First Lady Michelle Obama is in better shape, winning the approval of 62 percent of those surveyed while 28 percent disapprove of her.
The poll found more voters across the board see Romney and Cain in a favorable light than see them unfavorably. Forty percent of those surveyed view Romney as favorable while 36 percent see him as unfavorable. Cain is not as well known, but 33 percent see him favorably while 29 percent see him as unfavorable. The poll did have bad news for Perry. Only 23 percent see him as a favorable while 44 percent view the governor of the Lone Star State as unfavorable.
The poll of 904 voters was taken from Oct. 23-25 and had a margin of error of +/- 3 percent. This also included a sample from 328 Republican primary voters, which had a margin of error of +/- 5.5 percent.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
