Natalie Gonnella
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As Americans await the outcome of ongoing debt negotiations, in other political news from across the country Herman Cain has claimed the top spot in the latest conservative conference straw poll.
Earning nearly half the ballots cast at the Western Conservative Summit in Denver, the Georgia businessman trumped his GOP competition, with undeclared candidate Rick Perry finishing a very distant second. According to Politico's Haberman & Burns:
Herman Cain easily won the Western Conservative Summit presidential straw poll Sunday, drawing 246 ballots out of 508 cast and beating his nearest runner-up by a 179-vote margin.
Second-place contender Rick Perry took 67 votes, or 13 percent, to Cain's 48 percent. In third place was Rick Santorum with 50 ballots, or just under 10 percent,
In addition to Perry, the survey also included other unconfirmed candidates like former Ambassador John Bolton, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan.
As well as appearing in the straw poll, Perry also featured as the event's keynote speaker on Friday night.
The full results of the Western Conservative Summit Straw Poll are included below.
Michele Bachmann -- 9 percent, 44 votes
John Bolton -- 4 percent, 20 votes
Herman Cain -- 48 percent, 246 votes
Newt Gingrich -- 1 percent, 3 votes
Rudy Giuliani -- 0 percent, 0 votes
Jon Huntsman -- 0 percent, 1 vote
Gary Johnson -- 0 percent, 1 vote
Thaddeus McCotter -- 0 percent, 2 votes
Sarah Palin -- 1 percent, 5 votes
Ron Paul -- 2 percent, 12 votes
Tim Pawlenty -- 1 percent, 7 votes
Rick Perry -- 13 percent, 67 votes
Mitt Romney -- 10 percent, 49 votes
Rick Santorum -- 10 percent, 50 votes
Paul Ryan -– 1 vote
