26% Cain
23% Romney
14% Gingrich
8% Perry
7% Paul
2% Bachmann
2% Huntsman
1% Santorum
13% Undecided
It is important to note, however, that only 32% of GOP voters nationwide are firmly committed to their current candidate. Most (68%) say it is possible something could come up that causes them to change their mind.
The latest survey was conducted Wednesday night, after three full days of press coverage about the sexual harassment allegations against Cain.
However, when Rasmussen Reports asked GOP voters which candidate they’d support if they only had a choice between Cain, Romney and Gingrich, Romney comes out on top with 33% support while Cain draws 29%. Twenty-four percent (24%) support Gingrich in a three-way matchup.
When asked to choose between only Romney and Cain, the two men are tied. Forty-three percent (43%) support Romney in a two-way matchup, while 42% pick Cain. Romney is also essentially even with Gingrich in a two-way race.
Regardless of preference, 49% of GOP voters nationwide think Romney is most likely to win the nomination. Only 18% believe Cain is most likely to become the Republican nominee. If Romney is the nominee, only 12% would be Very Likely to consider voting for a third party candidate. Another 16% would be Somewhat Likely to do so. Seventy-five percent (75%) say they will support the Republican candidate in the general election even if their favorite candidate doesn’t win.
Among Republican voters nationwide, 76% were able to correctly identify Cain as the candidate who was accused of sexual harassment in the 1990s.
Just 13% of GOP Primary voters think it’s Very Likely that the charges against Cain are serious and true. Another 25% think it’s Somewhat Likely. Forty-eight percent (48%) consider it unlikely, but that includes only 13% who say that it is Not at All Likely.
Among all voters nationally, 39% believe the allegations against Cain are at least somewhat likely to be serious and true, while 38% disagree.
Cain leads among GOP voters who consider themselves Very Conservative with 38% of the vote. Among those who are Somewhat Conservative, Romney picks up 28% of the vote while Cain draws support from 24%.
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/elections/election_2012/election_2012_presidential_election/election_2012_republican_presidential_primary
