CNN and Opinion Research Corp. released a poll on Monday showing that former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, who made his debate debut that night with Republican primary rivals, remained the favorite to take on President Barack Obama in 2012.
Romney took 24 percent followed by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who has yet to announce a presidential bid, who took second with 20 percent. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who has not formally entered the race, took third with 12 percent, followed by businessman Herman Cain and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich who tied for fourth with 10 percent each. U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas placed sixth with 7 percent, followed by U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota with 4 percent. Another candidate from Minnesota -- former Gov. Tim Pawlenty -- was in eighth with 3 percent. Former Gov. Jon Huntsman of Utah, who has also not formally entered the race, and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania garnered 1 percent each. The most recent CNN and Opinion Research poll, taken from May 24-26, had Giuliani in front with 16 percent and Romney right behind him with 15 percent.
The poll also found Romney would profit if some of the potential candidates chose not to run.
When Giuliani was taken out of the mix, Romney took 28 percent followed by Palin with 23 percent. Gingrich followed with 11 percent while Cain and Paul tied for fourth with 10 percent.
With Palin and Giuliani out of the equation, Romney routed the field, topping the poll with 35 percent followed by Gingrich with 16 percent. Paul took third with 13 percent followed by Cain who remained at 10 percent.
Despite his failed bid for the Republican nomination back in 2008, 66 percent of the Republicans surveyed wanted to see Giuliani enter the 2012 race, as opposed to 33 percent who want the former mayor to stay out of it. A majority of those surveyed -- 54 percent -- also wanted to see Palin enter the race, while 44 percent did not want her in the race.
The poll also found Republicans are coming around to the idea that Romney will be their standard bearer in 2012, with 42 percent of those surveyed thinking he would most likely be the GOP nominee. Palin was thought likely to win the nomination by 14 percent of those surveyed, while 12 percent thought Giuliani would prevail. Despite his recent missteps, 9 percent said they thought Gingrich was the most likely Republican to face Obama in the general election. None of the other Republicans hopefuls garnered more than 3 percent.
The poll showed that Obama remained secure in his bid to win the Democratic nomination, with 81 percent of Democrats backing the president for another term while 18 percent opposed. Pro-life leader Randall Terry is running against Obama in the primaries and former U.S. Sen. Mike Gravel of Alaska, who ran for both the Democratic and Libertarian nominations in 2008, has left the door open for launching his own bid for the Democratic nomination.
The poll of 1,015 Americans took place between June 3-7 and had a margin of error of +/- 3 percent. This included questions to 433 Republicans with a margin of error of +/- 4.5 percent and 472 Democratsalso with a margin of error of +/- 4.5 percent.
Two other polls unveiled this weekend show Romney is increasingly becoming the man to beat in the Republican field. In a national poll conducted by Gallup for USAToday, Romney led the pack with 24 percent while Palin took second with 16 percent. Cain took third with 9 percent followed by Paul with 7 percent, while Pawlenty and Santorum tied for fifth with 6 percent. Bachmann and Gingrich took 5 percent each while former Gov. Gary Johnson of New Mexico garnered 2 percent and Huntsman took 1 percent. The poll of 851 Republicans and Republican-leaning independents was taken between June 8-11 and had a margin of error of +/- 4 percent.
Romney is crushing the competition in New Hampshire, home of the pivotal first primary battle, according to a poll from the Boston Globe and the University of New Hampshire Survey Center. Romney took 41 percent while Giuliani stood in second with 9 percent. Paul placed third with 6 percent followed by Palin with 5 percent, and Bachmann and Cain locked together at 4 percent each.
Four candidates -- Gingrich, Huntsman, Santorum and Pawlenty -- were all tied with 3 percent while Johnson took less than one-half of 1 percent. The question of Republican voters was part of a poll of 954 New Hampshire residents taken from June 1-8 with a margin of error of +/- 3.2 percent.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (850) 727-0859 end_of_the_skype_highlighting.
