Birthers Comprise Majority Of Likely 2012 GOP Primary Voters (POLL)

A survey released by Public Policy Polling on Tuesday finds skepticism over President Barack Obama's citizenship to be alive and well within the Republican community.

According to the poll, 51 percent of those likely to vote in a GOP primary in the next election cycle adhere to the conspiracy theory suggesting the president was born outside the United States and therefore is ineligible to serve.

Twenty-eight percent of respondents say they have no doubt that Obama is a citizen of the U.S., while 21 percent remain unsure, the survey shows.

An excerpt of analysis from PPP:

The GOP birther majority is a new development. The last time PPP tested this question nationally, in August of 2009, only 44% of Republicans said they thought Obama was born outside the country while 36% said that he definitely was born in the United States. If anything birtherism is on the rise.

For former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, the poll's findings suggest the potential presidential candidate could have a difficult time appealing to the birther voting bloc should he choose to run. Per PPP:

Well among the 49% of GOP primary voters who either think Obama was born in the United States or aren't sure, Romney's the first choice to be the 2012 nominee by a good amount, getting 23% to 16% for Mike Huckabee, 11% for Sarah Palin, and 10% for Newt Gingrich.

But with the birther majority he's in a distant fourth place at 11%...

The poll finds that within the birther community, Palin maintains a sky-high 83 percent approval rating. Conversely, among those who believe the president was born in the U.S., 47 percent view the former Alaska governor in a positive light.

"Any thought that the birther theory has been put to rest can be thrown out the window 
with this poll," explained President of Public Policy Polling president Dean Debnam. "That view is still widely held in Republican circles."