By Jane C. Timm, MSNBC.com
OKLAHOMA CITY — Presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson won the presidential straw poll at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference on Saturday with 25.4% of the vote — a cherry on the sundae for the candidate, who also scored a last-minute time slot upgrade when he replaced Sen. Ted Cruz as the gala event’s headline speaker.
Carson, a renowned neurosurgeon, announced his candidacy for president earlier this month, just two years after bursting onto the national stage with a National Prayer Breakfast speech where he insulted the president — who was just sitting two seats away. Carson’s win comes despite the fact that his address came late in the weekend’s events, indicating that many of his fans came prepared to vote for him.