Politics & Government

Poll: 31 Percent of Early State GOP Insiders Want Christie to Make White House Run

Those surveyed showed satisfaction with current Republican presidential field.

While influential local Republicans in the early caucus and primary states said they are satisfied with the current GOP presidential field, a third said Gov. Chris Christie would be their choice for another candidate to enter the race.

Sixty-three percent of those surveyed in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina said they are satisfied with the current field as part of the second Huffington Post-Patch Power Outsiders poll. Thirty-six percent of the 169 surveyed said that they wanted another candidate to enter the race.

The survey, conducted earlier this week, comes as the Republican establishment in Washington is looking for new candidates to enter the race.

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Christie, who has continually tempered speculation that he wants to run for president was the pick of 31-percent of the respondents when asked who they would like to see enter the race. Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, who announced Monday that he would not run, placed behind Christie with 17-percent. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin finished third with eight-percent and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani received four-percent. Twelve-percent of those who said they were satisfied with the field still gave the name of another candidate.

“While many GOP Power Outsiders would welcome the entry of a Christie or a Ryan, most we talked to are satisfied with the choices before them, The inside-the-Beltway Republican establishment may differ, but most of these influential Republicans at the grass roots are ready to choose from the candidates now in the race,” HuffPost senior polling editor Mark Blumenthal wrote.

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Those surveyed cited Christie’s record in the Garden State as why they picked the first term governor.

“I believe America is hungry for a leader, and the current field is more interested in playing to the base versus leading.” one outsider said. “Chris Christie exudes strong leadership characteristics.”

“Although the Republicans currently running for president are each impressive and on message, I think that Gov. Christie could add to the national discussion on ways to reduce government spending and better manage the economy,” another outsider said. “Gov. Christie has gained a reputation as ‘telling it like it is’ and American citizens can benefit from this kind of blunt criticism of the Obama administration.”

One outsider did caution against the governor making the race.

“While candidates like Chris Christie and Paul Ryan are appealing, it is getting far too late in the race for another new candidate to join,” the outsider said, explaining that a larger field would assist former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's bid for the Republican nomination.

To read Mark Blumenthal’s full analysis of the poll, please click here.

About The Huffington Post-Patch Power Outsiders Poll 

The polls are a series of weekly surveys designed to tap the deep reporting resources of the AOL Huffington Post Media Group in the three early GOP voting states. These nonscientific samplings of Republican party leaders, elected officials and political activists in the early primary and caucus states are an attempt to cover the "invisible primary" among party insiders that typically has great influence in the presidential nomination contests. While the surveys are not representative of a larger population, they constitute an extensive and systematic effort to monitor the opinions of Republican activists and party leaders in the early voting states.

We're looking to expand our list of influential and elected members of both parties in the three early states and across the country. If you fit the criteria and would like to participate, emailJohn.Celock@huffingtonpost.com, and we'll connect you with the appropriate Patch editor.


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