Huntsman Comes in Second in RLC Straw Poll

The big GOP primary news of the day is Jon Huntsman's surprisingly strong showing in the straw poll at the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans:

Rep. Ron Paul of Texas took the honors in the straw poll at the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans today, but it was Jon Huntsman who sprang a surprise with a strong second-place finish.

Paul won with 612 votes, followed by Huntsman with 382 and Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota –- who won praise for her performance in Monday’s debate in New Hampshire -– in third with 191. Herman Cain came in fourth with 104 votes, with GOP frontrunner Mitt Romney rounding out the top five with 74 votes.

This was something of a shock, considering that the moderate Huntsman was seen as not having much purchase among the die hard grassroots followers that attend these kind of events and vote in straw polls.

I asked one GOP campaign veteran who was at the conference how this happened, and his answer was intriguing. "His wife did a fantastic job, just doing retail politics and meeting people at the event," the operative said. "I think that's a big part of it -- she's a big asset."

Hmm. Maybe Mary Kaye Huntsman will turn out to be the anti-Callista Gingrich.