Conservatives gathered in Washington, D.C., last week said they favor former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney to be the Republican nominee instead of the party's frontrunner, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) -- even though Romney dropped out of the race on Thursday.
According to straw poll results released Saturday from the three-day Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), attendees would vote for Romney 35 percent to 34 percent for McCain.
A majority of respondents (56 percent) also said the candidate's position on issues is the most important factor for picking a nominee. The war on terrorism (51 percent), immigration (32 percent) and reducing the size of government (29 percent) topped voters' concerns.
Though the results are not favorable for McCain, political analysts said the poll does not signal an early end for the senator.
"I don't think the CPAC straw poll means much for the November election," Peter Brown, assistant director of the polling institute at Quinnipiac University told Cybercast News Service. "Clearly there are conservatives who are unhappy with McCain, and the straw poll gave them a chance to vent their frustrations."
"It is greatly exaggerated to express any great reliance on these polls," added Herb London, president of the conservative Hudson Institute.
"A campaign is not a photograph. It is a montage," he told Cybercast News Service. "As a consequence, views evolve. Positions adopted now may not be adopted in November."
"By November, Republicans will have a choice. They will either vote for McCain or whoever the Democrat[ic] nominee is," London said. "Under those circumstances Republicans are likely to gravitate around McCain not withstanding present comments."
"Obviously, there may be some conservatives who sit it out. Yet it's hard to see very many of them not voting for him when it counts in November, given that at that point it will be a choice between McCain and either Sen. Clinton or Sen. Obama," Brown said.
"In the end, I expect most conservatives will vote for McCain even if they hold their noses while doing it," he added.
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