The Republican Leadership Conference (RLC) is a political event held in the Southern United States before each presidential election. The event is attended by Republican Party activists, elected officials, and candidates for office. It was formerly known as the Southern Republican Leadership Conference. It has featured every major Republican presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan, and is best known for its presidential straw poll, which receives national media attention.
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The 2011 event featured various speakers, including Governors, Senators, state legislators, and authors. It was attended by several candidates, and potential candidates, for President of the United States, including Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, businessman Herman Cain, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, former Governor Gary Johnson, Congressman Ron Paul, Governor Rick Perry, former Governor Buddy Roemer and former Senator Rick Santorum.[1] Other speakers at the conference included Governors Bobby Jindal and Haley Barbour, and Barack Obama impersonator Reggie Brown.[2]
Congressman Ron Paul won the straw poll by a large margin, with Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr., who was scheduled to speak at the event but cancelled, placing second. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann and businessman Herman Cain placed in a close third and fourth.
| Finish | Candidate | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ron Paul | 41% |
| 2 | Jon Huntsman | 25% |
| 3 | Michele Bachmann | 13% |
| 4 | Herman Cain | 7% |
| 5 | Mitt Romney | 5% |
| 6 | Newt Gingrich | 5% |
| 7 | Rick Santorum | 2% |
| 8 | Tim Pawlenty | 1% |
| 9 | Gary Johnson | 1% |
| 10 | Buddy Roemer | 0.7% |
| 11 | Thad McCotter | 0.3 |
The 2010 convention was attended by U.S. Representative and 2008 presidential candidate Ron Paul of Texas;[3] Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele;[4] and former Alaska Governor and 2008 vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.[5]
Mitt Romney won the presidential straw poll by a single vote. Both Romney and Ron Paul received 24 per cent of the vote. Potential 2012 presidential candidates Senator John Thune of South Dakota, Governor Haley Barbour of Mississippi, Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and Governor Rick Perry of Texas asked for their names not to be included on the straw poll ballot.[6]
| Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| Mitt Romney | 439 | 24% |
| Ron Paul | 438 | 24% |
| Sarah Palin | 330 | 18% |
| Newt Gingrich | 321 | 18% |
| Mike Huckabee | 80 | 4% |
| Mike Pence | 58 | 3% |
| Tim Pawlenty | 54 | 3% |
| Rick Santorum | 41 | 2% |
| Gary Johnson | 3 | 1% |
| Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| Newt Gingrich | 339 | 20% |
| Sarah Palin | 332 | 20% |
| Mitt Romney | 242 | 14% |
| Mike Huckabee | 178 | 11% |
| Mike Pence | 141 | 8% |
| Rick Santorum | 125 | 7% |
| Tim Pawlenty | 114 | 7% |
| Gary Johnson | 104 | 6% |
| Ron Paul | 98 | 6% |
Then-Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist won the 2006 straw poll.
| Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| Bill Frist | 526 | 36.9% |
| Mitt Romney | 205 | 14.4% |
| George Allen | 147 | 10.3% |
| George W. Bush | 147 | 10.3 |
| John McCain | 66 | 4.6% |
| Mike Huckabee | 54 | 3.8% |
| Write-in candidates other than Bush and Rice | 43 | 3.0% |
| George Pataki | 38 | 2.7% |
| Condoleezza Rice | 32 | 2.2% |
| Sam Brownback | 22 | 1.5% |
| Rudy Giuliani | 15 | 1.1% |
| Newt Gingrich | 13 | 0.9% |
| Chuck Hagel | 3 | 0.2% |