Rudy Giuliani 2008 presidential campaign in the state) for third place, well behind front-runners McCain and Romney. By a January 24, 2008 poll, Giuliani was in third place in Florida with 20% of the vote, compared to 23% for John McCain and 27% for Mitt Romney. Another blow to Giuliani was the late endorsements for McCain of Florida Senator and former Chairman of the Republican National Committee Mel Martinez on January 25 and the highly popular Governor of Florida, Charlie Crist, on January 26. Crist had planned to endorse Giuliani in the early autumn, and had still been expected to do so in early January.
Political positions of Rudy Giuliani Long, chairman of the Conservative Party of New York stated, "I just don't see Rudy Giuliani being able to sway conservatives within the Republican Party. The gay marriage issue draws a line down the middle of the street, and Rudy Giuliani is something of a champion of gay rights." Bipartisan political consultant Joseph Mercurio said, "You can't get much more to the left than Giuliani was on gay issues." According to 365 Gay News, "Giuliani said that broad-brush themes, like limited government, ought to define the Republican Party – not hot-button social issues like abortion and gay rights." Giuliani opposed