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Huckabee signs tax pledge, lags in polls Thursday, Mar 8, 2007 By Aaron Sadler Stephens Washington Bureau WASHINGTON - Mike Huckabee looked to build support among conservatives on Wednesday by signing a pledge not to raise taxes if he is elected president. But a new poll suggests the former Arkansas governor may need to do much more to build his standing among potential voters. Huckabee's bid for the Republican presidential nomination barely registered support, even among white evangelicals, in a poll released Wednesday by Quinnipiac University. Quinnipiac surveyed more than 1,000 likely voters in three states identified as pivotal in 2008: Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Among registered Republicans, Huckabee's support was less than 1 percent in Pennsylvania and Ohio and just at 1percent in Florida. He and nine other possible GOP candidates, including Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback, languished at the bottom of the survey behind front-runners Rudolph Guiliani of New York, Sen. John McCain of Arizona and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. "I've never worried too much about what the polls say, although my numbers are showing movement in the right direction," said Huckabee. "That's a good thing for someone who has only been in the race for five weeks." Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich of Georgia - who has not announced a presidential bid - came in third, ahead of Romney, in each state. Almost 20 percent of Republicans were undecided. Guiliani, the former New York City mayor, led the Republican field and would win over top Democrats in head-to-head challenges in each state identified by pollsters as swing states in previous presidential elections. Meanwhile Wednesday, Huckabee delivered a signed pledge to the Washington-based Americans for Tax Reform group, promising to oppose income tax hikes if elected. He also spoke to members of the organization in a private meeting. Huckabee has been criticized by fiscal conservatives for his record as governor, which includes a sales tax hike to pay for education improvements and a fuel tax increase for highway repairs. "I was not pressured by ATR, because I have always shared their vision for fair, flat and low taxes," he said. "I'm glad I had the opportunity to sign the pledge." Romney, Brownback, Rep. Duncan Hunter of California, former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore and Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado are the other 2008 GOP contenders who have signed the pledge. In the Quinnipiac poll, Huckabee drew 3 percent support among self-described "born again" evangelicals in Florida, but only 1 percent in Pennsylvania and Ohio. "He just doesn't have any name ID," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac polling institute. "Everybody I've talked to thinks Huckabee is a good speaker, all the other things, but breaking out is a difficult thing to do. But there is a niche there for a traditional conservative." The poll's margin of error is plus or minus three percentage points. Huckabee placed seventh in a straw poll at an annual meeting of conservatives in Washington last weekend. Guiliani won that poll and Romney was second. Brownback, seen by analysts as Huckabee's stiffest competitor for the social conservative vote, came in fourth. "Several of the candidates invested significant resources in paying for registration and hotel costs for people attending, so as to push the straw poll results," Huckabee said. "We didn't feel that was a good use of resources and didn't do that." McCain drew 164 votes to Guiliani's 162 in a Spartanburg, S.C., straw poll Friday. Huckabee was seventh with 21 votes, just behind write-in choice Gingrich. South Carolina has one of next year's earliest presidential primaries. Huckabee said he was focusing on early primary and caucus states, where he hoped to spread his "message of conservative values." He is also trying to raise money, which he has acknowledged as an uphill battle. In an e-mail to supporters Wednesday, he asked for contributions of up to $500 to "send a terrific message about our growing grassroots support." The first financial report from his presidential exploratory committee is due April 15. |
