Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin has found at least one state that will support her run for president: New Mexico.
A poll by Public Policy Polling shows Ms. Palin would receive significant support in the Republican presidential primary in the state, before losing to President Obama in the general election.
Ms. Palin tops the Republican field in a presidential primary in New Mexico with 20 percent of the support among Republican primary voters. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney trailed with 17 percent support.
The poll is the first to place Ms. Palin ahead of her Republican counterparts and it follows an announcement from Ms. Palin’s political action committee, SarahPAC, that the former Alaska governor has hired a chief of staff.
The poll also found former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty received 6 percent support, Rep. Ron Paul with 4 percent support and Indiana governor Mitch Daniels with 3 percent support.
The survey also found that former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson would be the strongest candidate against President Obama. Mr. Johnson is seen a dark horse candidate.
Ms. Palin has struggled in recent weeks as a number of pre-primary polls have found her trailing both Mr. Romney and Mr. Huckabee, both of whom are seen as front-runners.
It is expected that a number of Republican candidates will announce their candidacies in the coming weeks.
