Poll: McCain seen as a leading GOP voice

NEW YORK, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., loser in the 2008 presidential election, is widely seen as a leading voice of the Republican party, a new Harris poll indicates.

Sixty-four percent of all adults taking part in the survey view McCain as influential, including 27 percent who think he has great influence, Harris said.

Other Republican leaders who are viewed by many people as influential and as leading voices in the party include former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, McCain's vice presidential running mate and former governor of Alaska Sarah Palin, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Outside of McCain, more people see Palin and Limbaugh as leading voices of the party, and Palin scores more highly among Republicans.

These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,276 adults surveyed online between Dec. 7 and 14, 2009, by Harris Interactive. The survey's margin of error was not given.