Wow: Gallup Poll Says Perry Leads 2012 Field By 12 Points
On August 16th, shortly after Governor Rick Perry’s official entrance into the 2012 race, a Rasmussen poll showed him with an immediate 11 point lead. But some said it could have been a fluke, and that as the race wore on that lead would disappear.
But now a just-released Gallup poll shows an identical result. Perry has a 12 point lead, which means that the 2012 race has a real and sharply-defined front runner for the first time.
Shortly after announcing his official candidacy, Texas Gov. Rick Perry has emerged as rank-and-file Republicans’ current favorite for their party’s 2012 presidential nomination. Twenty-nine percent of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents nationwide say they are most likely to support Perry, with Mitt Romney next, at 17%. …
Perry is a strong contender among key Republican subgroups. Older Republicans and those living in the South show especially strong support for him, at or near 40%. Conservative Republicans strongly favor Perry over Romney, but liberal and moderate Republicans support the two about equally. Perry’s support is also above average among religious Republicans.
It’s worth noting that a potential Palin entrance into the race doesn’t seem to impact Perry at this point given that he’d maintain an 11 point lead. Of course, a potential Palin candidacy is much different than a real Palin candidacy, so I’d expect her to have a bit more impact than that if she gets in.
But the poll is an absolute victory for the Perry campaign. He wins over all other candidates among men and women. He wins in every age demographic except the youngest (Ron Paul beats him 21% to 29%) and every geographic region except the east where, as you might expect, Romney wins. Except, get this, Romney only wins by one point.
We have a long way to go, Iowa hasn’t even voted yet for crying out loud, but as of right now this is shaping up to be Perry’s race to lose.
Tags: election 2012, gallup, rick perry
