Thread: Cain gets more votes than Perry, Romney combined in Fla.

Herman Cain Wins Florida GOP Straw Poll

Published September 24, 2011
FoxNews.com

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain arrives onstage to address the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla., Friday, Sept. 23, 2011.

Businessman Herman Cain won the Florida straw poll Saturday, beating Texas Gov. Rick Perry, the GOP presidential frontrunner who just two days earlier delivered a debate performance that was widely panned.

Cain finished with 37 percent of the vote, while Perry trailed with 15 percent. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney followed with 14 percent while former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum drew 11 percent. U.S. Rep. Ron Paul finished with 10.5 percent, while former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman finished with 2 percent.

U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, who won the Iowa straw poll in August, finished with just 1 percent of the vote.

"Thank you to the Republican voters for this incredible honor of being named the winner of the Presidency 5 straw poll in Florida today," Cain said in a statement after the results were in.

"This is a sign of our growing momentum and my candidacy that cannot be ignored. I will continue to share my message of 'common sense solutions' across this country and look forward to spending more time in Florida, a critical state for both the nomination and the general election," he said.

Perry, who was expected to finish strong had told the more than 3,000 GOP activists who came from across the state that his rivals made a mistake by skipping the straw poll..

Romney and Bachmann had both left Florida before the voting began and their campaigns discounted the straw poll's role in the campaign.

Other first-tier candidates hadn't actively organized for the Florida vote, either. So the results probably won't shuffle the campaign's standings and were shaping up as little more than a popularity contest among the delegates selected by local party organizations.

Ahead of the test vote, Perry's campaign bought breakfast for hundreds of the party faithful assembled for a three-day conference and debate. Perry said skipping the straw poll was a blunder.

"I think that's a big mistake. I think it's very important," Perry said, citing its history.

Previous straw polls have predicted the GOP nominee.

Ronald Reagan won in 1979, George H.W. Bush in 1987 and Kansas Sen. Bob Dole in 1995. The Republican Party of Florida, however, has not organized the test vote in recent years.

Perry, a late entrant into the Republican primary who quickly led national polls, stumbled in recent weeks.

His strident defense of in-state tuition rates for illegal immigrants put him on the wrong side of the GOP's conservative base. His rivals worked to exploit his opposition to a fence along the U.S.-Mexican border and his support of a mandatory vaccine for girls against a sexually transmitted disease.

A Florida poll victory could prove helpful, especially ahead of Friday's deadline for the latest fundraising snapshot.

From Florida, Perry was headed later Saturday to a Republican gathering on Mackinac Island in Michigan. Romney, the son of a former Michigan governor, also was set to address the crowd in the state where he spent his youth.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/09 ... z1YuvYlpe8

Cain upsets Perry in Florida Republican straw poll

U.S. presidential candidate Herman Cain speaks to delegates during the Republican Party of Florida Presidency 5 Convention in Orlando, Florida September 24, 2011.

ORLANDO, Florida | Sat Sep 24, 2011 7:17pm EDT

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - Former pizza executive Herman Cain surprised rival Rick Perry with an upset victory on Saturday in a Republican presidential straw poll in Florida, dealing a disappointing loss to the Texas governor two days after a shaky debate performance.

Perry, leading in the polls for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, had needed a victory in what was an early test of strength to salve the wounds left over from a debate with his rivals on Thursday in which he struggled.

Instead, former Godfather's Pizza executive Cain, who is far behind the two top-tier candidates Perry and Mitt Romney, won with 37 percent of 2,657 votes cast.

Perry was a distant second at 15 percent, just ahead of Romney, who won 14 percent despite not participating in the poll. Further back were Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman and Michele Bachmann.

Florida's straw poll is a nonbinding popularity poll and is significant only in terms of showing a candidate's strength in the state. The state contests to determine the Republican nominee do not start until early next year.

The Perry camp shrugged off the results.

"Cain won, we still have work to do," said Perry spokesman Mark Miner. "It's his day. The conservative message won today. We've been in this race for five weeks. We're going to continue campaigning hard."

Miner put the focus on Romney's third-place finish, saying Perry's chief rival has been running for president for years and is still not breaking through.

"It's more of what happened to Mitt Romney. He's not going to be crowned president of the United States. He's going to have to work for it. And after five and a half years he once again got rejected in a key state in the Republican primary process," Miner said.

Perry created doubts among some conservatives at a debate with his Republican rivals on Thursday that he admitted on Friday was not his best performance. He was criticized by his rivals for a Texas policy that allows children of illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition rates at Texas colleges.

"Perry doesn't stand for our constitutional values," said delegate Kris Anne Hall, who voted for Cain. "Perry doesn't stand up against illegal immigration."

Perry surrogate Michael Williams, in addressing the straw poll delegates on Saturday before the vote, sought to do some damage control for the Texas governor, who had addressed an Orlando breakfast earlier before campaigning in Michigan.

"We're not electing a debater-in-chief, we're electing a commander-in-chief," said Williams, adding that no illegal immigrant in Texas had received a handout for a free education.

Cain, an African-American who promotes himself as a pragmatic problem-solver with a clear tax reform plan, eagerly welcomed the victory.

"This is a sign of our growing momentum and my candidacy that cannot be ignored," Cain said after his win.

Most political analysts give him no chance of winning the nomination.

But Florida's Republican Party had noted that since 1979 every winner of the Florida straw poll has gone on to become the party's nominee. Senator John McCain won it in the 2008 cycle and defeated Romney to become the nominee.

Florida, the most populous of the presidential swing states, is a critical test for both Republicans and Democrats. The Florida vote was so close in the 2000 election that it led to a ballot recount battle between Democrat Al Gore and Republican George W. Bush, who was ruled the winner.

Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, and Bachmann chose not to compete in the straw poll but since they took part in the debate and spoke earlier to delegates at the convention in Orlando, the Florida Republican Party put their names on the ballot.

Perry issued a statement after the straw poll results were revealed that was clearly aimed at Romney.

"Floridians and voters nationally want a candidate who is clear on the issues and talks honestly about the future, not someone who takes multiple sides of an issue and changes views every election season. Today's vote demonstrates that Floridians are energized and ready to help get America working again," he said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/ ... RE20110924

September 24, 2011 6:45 PM

Herman Cain gets more votes than Perry, Romney combined in Florida mock election

By Rebecca Kaplan Topics In The News ,Campaign 2012 .24 Comments

ORLANDO - Herman Cain was the clear winner Saturday of a straw poll of Republican activists in this battleground state, amassing more votes that the frontrunners for the presidential nomination, Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, combined.

Cain, a Georgia businessman whose compelling personal story - he grew up poor and black and beat cancer - and fiery rhetoric about the need to simplify the tax code and jump-start the economy struck a chord with Republican activists here, won 37 percent of the 2,657 votes cast. Perry, who made a late but spirited effort in the state, got 15 percent. Romney, who had announced earlier he is not competing in straw polls, came in third with 14 percent of the vote.


Trailing the top three: Sen. Rick Santorum, 11 percent; Rep. Ron Paul, 10 percent; Newt Gingrich, 8 percent; former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, 2 percent and Michele Bachmann, 1 percent.


The mock election run by the state party capped a three-day convention where Cain and former Santorum appeared to pick up new supporters as the front-runners stagnated or stumbled. Bachmann, Romney and Huntsman had previously announced they would not be campaigning for straw poll votes, though their names appeared on the ballot.


Perry faces hurdles in Fla. straw poll
Rick Perry: I'm "authentic"
CBSNews.com's coverage of Election 2012


Only Cain, Santorum, Gingrich and Paul stayed to make closing arguments to the attendees on Saturday afternoon. Bachmann and Romney left Friday evening after speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference, and Perry left early Saturday morning after hosting a breakfast for the delegates.


Before the voting commenced, both Romney and Perry headed to the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference in Mackinac Island, Mich., where that state's Republican party is also holding a convention and straw poll this weekend. The Michigan results, tabulated by National Journal's Hotline, will be announced Sunday morning in Hotline On Call.


This is the first time in more than a decade that Florida Republicans have held a straw poll, but in the past, the contest has accurately predicted the winners of the GOP presidential nomination: Delegates voted for Ronald Reagan in 1979, George H.W. Bush in 1987 and Bob Dole in 1995.


In a recent interview with Fox News, Florida Gov. Rick Scott predicted Republicans in his state would repeat that performance. "I believe whoever wins this straw poll on Saturday will be the Republican nominee and I believe the Republican nominee will be the next president," he said.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162- ... 03544.html

Is this the guy who called Newt his hero, when the last question was asked, 'Who on this stage would you pick as a running mate?'

Cain is the man. Cains problem is name recognition. This will change. When I first heard his name , I said WHO? Since then I have researched him and followed him closely, he has not said one thing most Americans would disagree with. He should rise to the top if more people would really engage and listen to what he has to say. He is an individual that really believes in American Exceptionalism and the idea that personal responsibility and accountability is the means to success.

He is certainly getting my vote. I am from Texas and could have told you all about Perry. The man is just plain dumb and a liar. He is George Bush made over, cowboots, Texas drawl and the inteligence of a door knob, but plenty of GOP money behind him. Don't laugh, look at what the American people have put in office the last 11 years. We are incredibly stupid to believe the media who is controlled by both parties.

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