Anti-immigration sentiment has battered Texas Governor Rick Perry's campaign for the party's nomination. Romney and other Republican rivals have seized on Perry's support for a Texas law allowing children of illegal immigrants who are admitted to public universities to attend at lower state-resident tuition rates, to portray him as lax on an issue that stirs resentment among some Republican voters.
As the candidates prepare to meet tonight, former Godfather's Pizza chief executive Herman Cain has pulled almost even with Romney on the question of who would do the most to improve the economy, among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents. Twenty-two percent of the party's supporters picked Romney, 20 percent Cain, and 12 percent Perry.
Cain has promoted a simple "9-9-9" economic plan that would replace the current tax structure with 9 percent flat corporate and individual income tax rates and a 9 percent national sales tax. Romney, who founded Boston-based private equity firm Bain Capital LLC, has stressed his business background and a 59-point economic program.
Republican supporters expressed the greatest reservations about the economic credentials of U.S. Representative Michele Bachmann of Minnesota. Fourteen percent said she would do the most damage to the economy, followed by 11 percent who named Representative Ron Paul of Texas and 9 percent Perry.
While Romney barely leads on the economy, he maintains his overall advantage as the candidate Republican supporters most want to see as the nominee, at 24 percent, with Cain second at 16 percent and Perry third at 13 percent.
Rounding out the field, 6 percent of the party's supporters back Paul, 4 percent Bachmann, 3 percent former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, 1 percent former Senator Rick Santorum and less than 1 percent former U.S. Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman.
Neither political party has yet persuaded the country of its economic case either.
More than half of Americans either believe the current economic situation would be the same with a Republican in the White House instead of President Barack Obama or say they don't know which party would do a better job. The rest are about evenly divided, with 23 percent saying a Republican president would manage the economy better versus 25 percent who say a Republican president would be worse.
Among political independents, 55 percent said it makes no difference and 7 percent said they didn't know the answer.
A similar breakdown shows when Americans are asked how the result of the 2012 presidential election will affect their personal financial situation. Forty-nine percent say they don't know or don't believe the president will make a difference. Twenty-four percent say Obama's re-election would be better, and the same portion say the victory of a Republican would do more for their own finances.