Hunter Wins Texas Straw Poll
By chrysostom15 Posted in 2008 — Comments (3) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-strawpoll2sep02,1,729234.stor...
Hunter recieved 41% of the vote in the Texas Straw Poll ... which likely means he isn't going to drop out before the Iowa Caucus. F. Thompson was 2nd with 21%, and Ron Paul 3rd with 17%.
In the, poll, tool-and-die maker Ray McKinney of Savannah, Ga., recieved 28 votes; more votes than Brownback, Tancredo, McCain, and Cox recieved.
Huckabee, Giuliani, Romney all recieved less than 7% of the vote, but more votes than tool-and-die maker Ray McKinney.
The straw poll was only for party activists, and those casting ballots must have been a delegate or an alternate to a recent GOP state or national convention.
Like Brownback's win in the pro-life poll, Hunter's win is a statement that he can still make the case that he is a viable candidate.
I don't argue that Hunter did well. But with all the campaigns generally ignoring this poll, I'm not sure that it has much meaning. Certainly it has less than Ames.
Hunter may stay in, but I think the real determining factor is not the poll but the aftermath. If Hunter receives even a fraction of the attention (and attendant funds) that Huckabee got/is getting after Ames, than he will stay. If this turns into a non-story, I doubt Hunter will have enough in the coffers to keep the operation going.
Rank your choices in this week's GOP Tuesday Tracker, here
http://www.choiceranker.com/election.php?eid=120
and in the September ChoiceRanker GOP poll here:
http://www.choiceranker.com/election.php?eid=116
Ray McKinney isn't in either of those, though, since he apparently isn't registered with the FEC, but I'll add him to the poll that includes prospective GOP candidates like Gingrich, here:
http://www.choiceranker.com/election.php?eid=117
Good for Duncan.