Herman Cain Wins Florida Straw Poll Ahead Of 2012 (VIDEO)

Video produced by Sara Kenigsberg

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain came out on top in the Florida straw poll on Saturday.

The former CEO of Godfather's Pizza won the test of conservative strength with roughly 37 percent of the vote. Texas Governor Rick Perry came in second place, followed by former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, who did not actively compete in the event. Here's a full breakdown of the results:

Herman Cain: 37.11%
Rick Perry: 15.43%
Mitt Romney: 14.00%
Rick Santorum: 10.88%
Ron Paul: 10.39%
Newt Gingrich: 8.43%
Jon Huntsman: 2.26%
Michele Bachmann: 1.51%

"This is a sign of our growing momentum and my candidacy that cannot be ignored," Cain said in a statement addressing the results. "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."

Perry, who was expected by many to win the straw poll, signaled his belief earlier in the day that it was a "big mistake" for rival candidates like Romney and Bachmann to opt against campaigning for support in the event.

The Lone Star State Republican said, "I've got all my hopes on Florida."

HuffPost's Jon Ward reported from Florida on Friday:

Just a few weeks ago, the Texas governor was taking the Republican presidential primary by storm, but his star has fallen rapidly over the course of his first three debates. On Thursday night, it came crashing down.

Conservatives flocked to the three-day conclave here – kicked off by the Google-Fox News debate Thursday night – "ready to marry" Perry, but left "spooked" by his performance, said one Florida Republican with contacts among both campaign operatives and grassroots activists.

That discontent has been building, though it's not final in any sense. Perry's fortunes have fallen in large part because of a series of gaffes that demonstrated his lack of discipline and experience on a national stage. In several key moments during the past few weeks, the governor showed a tendency to undermine some of his best moments and to make tough or difficult moments even worse. His potential supporters have grown leery of Perry as the list of his unforced errors has grown longer.

Before hitting bumps in the road, Perry experienced a surge in the polls after announcing his candidacy for president of the United States. The Texas governor jumped into the GOP primary race the same day as the Ames Straw Poll. He did not actively compete in the event, which was won by Bachmann.

Even though Bachmann did not campaign for support in the Florida straw poll, the conservative congresswoman's eighth place finish is likely to be treated as a sign of bad news for her political ambitions.

Nevertheless, on Friday Bachmann said she's "in it for the long haul" despite many framing the race as a match-up between Perry and Romney for the Republican presidential nomination.

Whether or not the results of the Florida straw poll will affect the state of the GOP primary race remains to be seen. While Cain has been considered a longshot contender in the Republican contest, the presidential hopeful has found success in appealing to conservatives on the trail.

For more on Herman Cain, check out the slideshow below:

 

 

Comments

[bikerdude]

01:47 PM on 11/20/2011

Why can't I post here today?

[bikerdude]

01:45 PM on 11/20/2011

Florida Republicans are inimical to the best interests of the citizens of the USA...Scott, West, Rubio, now Cain??? WTF?

[joeyfoto]

11:21 AM on 11/09/2011

Florida Republicans demonstrate — once again — their inability to match socks.

Although, I must agree, Herman Cain is my dream candidate too... We'll see...jt

[Eric Shin]

08:14 AM on 11/09/2011

Just proves again the state that brought us the pooper and Casey Anthony has the most kooks per capita

[DianeBkht]

12:29 AM on 11/09/2011

When did we as Americans start supporting rapist and molesters? The grabbing of the head to the crouch was assault alone! The thing about this sad disturbing issue is, there is a pattern that needs to be addressed! If you were ever a product of sexual harrassment, women definitly know it is hard to come forward due to your word against your aggressor. It is like you were raped and feel it was your fault. As I look at how smug and arrogant Herman Cain appears...I can't help but to think "Is there a video out there of Mr. Cain and his actions somewhere?" I also feel his wife has not been seen much in public, due to all these accusations against him, before he ran....smart woman....but then again she is a Democrat! Herman Cain STOP BLAMING THE DEMOCRATS FOR YOUR MESS!!! All these women thus far are Republicans.

[moutonnoir]

11:32 PM on 11/08/2011

yes GOP, by all means, run this trainwreck..

lets see how that goes...

[GarryGreen123]

11:57 PM on 11/08/2011

and DNC mean what then only our side?

[powerage]

08:21 PM on 11/08/2011

Is there gonna be a recount?

[bikerdude]

12:03 PM on 10/12/2011

I wonder how many people were included in that vote? The criminal governor looked like he would choke when he made that announcement... So Republicans, now what?

[stevuhl]

02:23 PM on 09/29/2011

We Independents wonder if Herman Cain won the FL Straw Poll because he endorses FairTax; a great portion of the 2010 House winners seem to have profited by that:--------------------------------FairTax Summary from 2010 Election

House Candidates backing FairTax did very well in 2010 races across the country

Of the 435 races for the U.S. House, 114 of them involved candidates expressing some support for FairTax.

FairTax was a significant issue in 30 of the races; 1 FairTax candidate was an Incumbent, and 29 FairTax candidates were Challengers. The FairTax Incumbent won his race for 100% success rate.

In the 29 Challenger races, 17 were won by the FairTax candidate for a 58.6% success rate overall.

Of the 29 races, there were 13 where the FairTax was defended either by the Grassroots or the Challenger. Of that 13, 11 were won, for an 84.6% success rate.

Compared to Republicans who were not identified as supporters of the FairTax, those aggressively promoting and defending it enjoyed a 58.8% advantage.

The conclusion is clear: The more that the public hears about the FairTax the more they like it and will support advocates of the proposal. FairTax candidates are much more likely to be elected, and candidates that adopt the FairTax as a key plank in their political platform and aggressively promote it are far more likely to win than those that are less enthusiastic in their support of the FairTax.

[candoworker]

10:11 PM on 09/28/2011

I looked but could not find an answer in the article....Was this straw poll like the Iowa straw poll where the event is a fund raiser and the "person who wins" is the candidate who spent the most money buying the most tickets and then handing them out with their name already checked off?

If that is the case, I fail to see how any definitive conclusions can be drawn about who is the real winner. I am also in agreement with Robert's Rules of Order prohibition of straw polls. Robert's Rules of Order calls them "meaningless and dilatory" because they subvert the deliberative charge of deliberative bodies. (10th edition, pg 415)
Source: http://www.robertsrules.com/

Be smart, be level-headed, be informed with the facts
When it comes time to vote, vote with your head.

[Ed438]

07:46 PM on 09/28/2011

I wrote a recent posting in which I called the Tea Party racist and met with many denials on that subject. But many others including the NAACP have said the same thing:

http://sha­kespearess­ister.blog­spot.com/2­010/10/tea­-party-rac­ism.html

This doesn't mean that everyone in the Tea Party movement is a racist but the TPs attempts to discredit Obama through the birther and other angles are to me undeniably racist.

Yes, but they say that Cain's popularity proves they are not. As I wrote, the straw poll in Florida was a protest vote in my opinion and the fact that the GOP powers-tha­t-be have been courting, of late, Chris Christie, for example apparently without success (I wouldn't be surprised if he eventually allows himself to "be persuaded" to run.) shows that not to be too far-fetche­d.

We must remember that the GOP felt betrayed by the poor showing of their Presidentia­l and Vice Presidenti­al candidates­' in the last election (especiall­y to a black man, "that one" in McCain's unfortunat­e choice of words,) and they don't want to repeat the process!

They don't need, at this point, the two Palinesque ladies O'Donnell and especially Bachman or the Ricks Perry and Santorum among many others, and they have to find someone who is at least electable. So far, they have had little success.

[jojo1983]

12:18 AM on 09/28/2011

Anyone against the 999 plan must be a r@cist.

[momsopenarea]

12:14 AM on 09/28/2011

Ooops! What happened here? I thought all those TEA Party people were just a bunch of racists.

[JessCostello]

09:56 PM on 09/27/2011

I think this is less a vote for Herman Cain the man and more of a broadside against the political class.

Rick Perry is a lifelong politician.

Mitt Romney has some experience in the private sector but comes from the Republican establishment, he's also the son of a former Republican governor.


They like Herman Cain the businessman. But Cain already has enough gaffes to keep him from being electable. So this is a protest vote.

[joeyfoto]

11:36 AM on 11/09/2011

JessCostello wrote: "They like Herman Cain the businessma­n. But Cain already has enough gaffes to keep him from being electable. So this is a protest vote."

#943 Fanned for perspicacity...jt

PS. This is also a minority vote (37%) of the Florida GOPers who attended this conference; there is plenty of room for racism in that other 63%.

[bacaja]

08:41 PM on 09/27/2011

If Cain won the GOP presidential nomination I would presume it was God's will and I would thank God because I know God works in mysterious ways.

[JessCostello]

09:56 PM on 09/27/2011

lol

[stevuhl]

02:47 PM on 09/29/2011

Bacaja, I hope you are laughing or at least kidding; don't you know that it is no mystery that God speaks to Michelle B, she is very clear, "and that is no mystery!" Of course, the big mystery is how God speaks to both Michelle and Rick P.--Oops, yes, there is a logical mystery in this offall somewhere after all.