Romney gearing up to run, say insiders

NEW YORK, Dec. 5 (UPI) -- He said he was through, but now Mitt Romney appears to be revving up to take another crack at the presidency, according to insiders.

The former Massachusetts governor spent Monday in New York meeting with key financial backers of his last time at the races to start to map out a strategy for the 2016 election, a member of Romney's inner circle told Business Insider.

Those at the meeting included developer Stephen Ross, New York Jets owner Woody Johnson, and hedge funders Julian Robertson and Paul Singer.

Romney also met with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who backed Romney last time around, but may run himself in the upcoming race.

A Romney trip to Iowa in October triggered a flurry of excitement and several encouragements to run again for the White House from politicians and business and agricultural executives.

A segment of the public apparently likes the idea. A CNN poll found that most likely GOP voters say they'd pick Romney for the Republican nomination among 16 potential contenders. Twenty percent of those polled say Romney would be their first choice. Retired neurosurgeon and conservative activist Ben Carson came in second with just 10 percent of the vote, followed closely by Jeb Bush and Christie.

Hillary Clinton topped the potential Democratic candidates in the poll, with 65 percent of likely Democratic voters picking her, followed by Elizabeth Warren (10 percent) and Vice President Joe Biden (9 percent).