Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is predicted to win the GOP 2012 presidential nominations, according to a Gallup poll of registered Republicans and Republican-leaning independents. The poll, released Thursday, shows that 45 percent of those polled believe Romney will receive the nomination regardless of which candidate they perfer. Herman Cain and Texas Gov. Rick Perry came in second and third, respectively.

The survey was conducted after sexual harassment allegations against Cain surfaced. Cain is accused of harassment while he was the president of the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s. He has denied the allegations. Cain's popularity has taken a hit but he remains tied with Romney, each with 21 percent support as the candidate Republicans are most likely to support.

Tea Party supporters show a "slight preference” for Cain but are as likely as Tea Party non-supporters “to believe Romney will eventually win the nomination,” according to Gallup.

Here’s more from Gallup:

"One reason Republicans may be most likely to believe Romney will win is because it appears at this point he would be the strongest challenger to President Obama. In Gallup's August, September, and October presidential trial heats matching various candidates against Obama, Romney has fared no worse, and in some cases better, than his GOP rivals."

The Gallup poll was conducted Nov. 2 to Nov 6. and has a sampling error of +/- 4 percentage points.

Who do you think will win the GOP nomination?

 

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