Paul wins CPAC presidential straw poll, Rubio takes second

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Kentucky Republican Senator Rand Paul won this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference 2016 presidential preference straw poll.

Paul was considered the likely favorite going into the three-day CPAC convention in suburban Washington, in large part because of his 13-hour Senate filibuster to demand more information from the Obama administration about its military drone policy. Paul won with 25 percent of the vote.

Florida’s Marco Rubio finished second among the 23 names on the ballot, garnering 23 percent of the vote. 

The first-term senators and Tea Party favorites are considered rising stars in the conservative movement.

Rick Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator and 2012 Republican presidential candidate, finished third with 8 percent of vote. He was followed by Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J., who took fourth with 7 percent.

 

Peter Schorsch is the President of Extensive Enterprises and is the publisher of some of Florida’s most influential new media websites, including SaintPetersBlog.com, FloridaPolitics.com, ContextFlorida.com, and Sunburn, the morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics. SaintPetersBlog has for three years running been ranked by the Washington Post as the best state-based blog in Florida. In addition to his publishing efforts, Peter is a political consultant to several of the state’s largest governmental affairs and public relations firms. Peter lives in St. Petersburg with his wife, Michelle, and their daughter, Ella.