Last night’s CTGOP Middletown Straw Poll turned out to be a huge success as 388 people voted to give a narrow win to former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.  Held at the Middletown Elks Lodge, guests from all over the state came to support their candidate for the Republican Presidential nomination.

Turnout for each candidate was spirited.  Congressman Ron Paul’s supporters came out in force, bringing out the Connecticut-based “Ron Paul balloon team”.  Gusty winds brought down the balloon before it could be fully displayed unfortunately.  Once inside the hall, the different campaigns passed out lapel stickers, lawn signs, and bumper stickers, ensuring that you will be seeing much more of the Republican Presidential campaigns in the days ahead.  Each campaign had one surrogate speak to the crowd.  Former Massachusetts Governor Jane Swift spoke for Senator John McCain (take that Mitt Romney!), businessman William Landers of Wallingford spoke for Gov. Mike Huckabee, and State Central Committeeman Ralph Capanera of Rocky Hill spoke for Rudy Giuliani.  Mayor Mark Boughton of Danbury advocated on behalf of Gov. Mitt Romney, and Mr. James Palmer spoke on Congressman Ron Paul’s behalf.

The inside story of the Straw Poll was, of course, the balloting.  The Romney campaign clearly pushed the “online balloting” portion of the event in their communications with supporters, as the online results showed: Giuliani 10, Huckabee 1, McCain 26, Paul 21, and 70 for Romney.  In the hall, the results were: Giuliani 24, Huckabee 8, McCain 78, Paul 75, and Romney 66.

With 388 participants, the Straw Poll turned out far better than we had anticipated, and are thankful to those that got involved in the event.  A portion of the proceeds from the event will be contributed to the Connecticut Breast Cancer Coalition/Foundation, as we join those who work to fight breast cancer.