WASHINGTON — With balloting set to begin in six weeks, Republicans have picked Newt Gingrich as their favorite alternative to Mitt Romney for their party’s presidential nomination, a new poll shows.
Gingrich, the former House speaker, is the new leader in a USA Today/Gallup poll out Monday morning, with the support of 22 percent of registered Republican voters. That puts him in a statistical tie with Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, who came in at 21 percent.
Herman Cain, who was at the head of the pack before facing allegations of sexual harassment, sank to 16 percent. The former Godfather’s Pizza CEO has denied any wrongdoing.
The poll, which has a four percentage point margin of error, lines up with other recent surveys showing Gingrich and Romney fighting for the lead.
Many conservatives do not like Romney, who had been considered the frontrunner, because they view him as too liberal.
Republicans have now flocked to Gingrich as he has tried to portray himself as the smartest, or at least most studied, candidate running for office. Voters have also said they like his refusal to ding his Republican rivals at debates.
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