The Other McCain

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ORLANDO GOP STRAW POLL RESULTS UPDATE: Herman Cain Beats Rick Perry

Posted on | September 24, 2011 | 102 Comments

We will have results of the important crucial life-or-death world-historical cosmos-shifting Florida Republican P5 Straw Poll within mere moments.

UPDATE: HERMAN CAIN WINS WITH 37.1%

UPDATE II: The St. Petersburg Times calls the results a “stunning upset,” as Rick Perry finished a distant second with less than 16%!

UPDATE III: Dave Weigel:

By failing so convincingly, Perry’s ensured that the weekend’s “trouble for frontrunner narrative” will be plated in gold and frozen in amber.

Or as he put it earlier: “shadows of vultures” are all over the Perry campaign.

UPDATE IV: The results, with nearly 2,700 delegates voting:

CAIN . . . . . . . . . . . 37.1%
PERRY . . . . . . . . . 15.4%
ROMNEY . . . . . . . 14.7%
SANTORUM . . . . 10.9%
PAUL . . . . . . . . . .  10.4%
GINGRICH . . . . . . 8.4%
HUNTSMAN . . . . 2.3%
BACHMANN . . . . 1.5%

“A total embarrassment for Perry,” says Allapundit.

UPDATE V: Just got off the phone with Cain campaign spokeswoman Ellen Carmichael, who informs me that the candidate is flying back to Atlanta to prepare for a trip to New York, where he will appear Monday on Fox & Friends to promote his new book, This Is Herman Cain!

A quick survey of headlines:

Cain upsets Perry at Florida straw poll
— USA Today

Cain wins GOP straw poll; result could
carry weight in presidential race
— Tampa Tribune

Hermain Cain wins Florida
straw poll in stunning victory
— Miami Herald

He’s definitely come a long way since the days of “Herman Who?”

UPDATE VI: Here’s one to save for your scrapbook, kids:

The link is to Seth McLaughlin’s Washington Times story:

ORLANDO — Former Godfather Pizza CEO Herman Cain won the Presidency 5 straw poll here Saturday, delivering a blow to Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s frontrunner status and a victory for a candidate who has struggled to transform his grassroots popularity into strong showings in national polls. . . .

UPDATE VII: Don Surber of the Charleston (W.Va.) Daily Mail:

Reeling from poor performances by Rick Perry in the CNN and Fox News debates, conservatives flocked to the Godfather — Herman Cain — as he swept today’s Florida Straw Poll with 37% of the vote. Trailing badly were Rick Perry 15%, Mitt Romney 14%, Rick Santorum 11%, Ron Paul 10%, Newt Gingrich 9%, Jon Huntsman 2%, and Michele Bachmann 2%.

Permit me humbly to suggest that this puts a decisive end to all that Chris Christie talk. I mean, how bad would it look if Republicans brought in a new candidate because they were afraid a black man might win the nomination?

UPDATE VIII: Press release from the Cain campaign:

Cain Sweeps Presidency 5 Poll,
Garners Florida Endorsement
(Orlando, FL)- Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain swept the Republican Party of Florida’s “Presidency 5” straw poll today in Orlando, capping off his strongest fundraising and grassroots week since the establishment of his campaign in May 2011. . . .
This week, Governor Rick Scott pointed out that the winner of the Presidency 5 straw poll would go on to win the nomination. He explained that former Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush, plus 1995 GOP nominee Bob Dole all won Florida straw polls.
“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. “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.”
On Friday evening, Scott Plakon, the Americans for Prosperity- Florida Legislator of the Year who represents the state’s 37th district, endorsed Herman Cain in front of more than 1,000 cheering supporters at the Rosen Center in Orlando, Fla. Scott is best known as the sponsor of the Florida Health Care Freedom Act, slated to be Amendment 1 on Florida’s 2012 general election ballot.
“I’m proud to support Herman Cain. Our country is suffering right now from bad ideas, bad policies and bad leadership. Herman Cain has the right ideas, the right policies and is a proven business and conservative leader,” Scott explained. “Over the last few days at the Orange County Convention Center, I’ve seen him connect with Florida voters like few candidates I’ve ever seen. I look forward to working with Herman Cain to see him win Florida and to become the next President of the United States.”
In addition to being named the victor of Thursday night’s FOX News/ Google/ RPOF Republican presidential candidate debate and the straw poll, Cain spent the entire week in Florida, touring the Sunshine State on his nationwide “Common Sense Solutions Bus Tour,” addressing CPAC Florida and speaking at the Presidency 5 festivities.

I’m told that people trying to make online donations at Herman Cain’s Web site have reported difficulty getting through because the traffic is so heavy. So while you’re waiting, how about hitting my tip jar instead?

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Category: Debates, Election 2012, Florida, Herman Cain, Polls, Republicans, Rick Perry

Comments

102 Responses to “ORLANDO GOP STRAW POLL RESULTS UPDATE: Herman Cain Beats Rick Perry”

  1. Herman Cain Wins NFRW Straw Poll In KC With 48.9% of the Votes – That Makes Three in a Row | FavStocks
    October 3rd, 2011 @ 4:15 am

    […] strong performance in debates Sept. 12 in Tampa and Sept. 22 in Orlando, followed by his shocking upset win in the Sept. 24 Florida GOP straw poll, ignited a massive influx of online […]

  2. CAMPAIGN FOCUS: Will Rick Santorum Be the Next GOP ‘Flavor of the Week’? : The Other McCain
    October 4th, 2011 @ 10:49 pm

    […] Sept. 12 in Tampa and Sept. 22 in Orlando – were followed by Cain’s surprise victory in the Sept. 24 Florida GOP straw poll. Since then, a series of polls have shown a steep decline in Perry’s support. While Perry was […]