Cain: Perry doesn’t have evangelicals locked up

Associated Press

HARRIMAN, Tenn.

Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain said Saturday he’ll go toe-to-toe with Rick Perry for the GOP primary’s critical evangelical vote.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Cain said the Texas governor “thought he had carved out that niche, when he didn’t own that niche by himself.”

“People are realizing that he is not the only Christian conservative in this race,” Cain told The AP at a campaign stop in Harriman, Tenn., where he spoke before close to 1,000 tea-party activists.

“You know, I don’t wear my Christian faith, which has been my faith since I was 10 years old, on my forehead,” Cain said. “But people can see it on my website, and when they read my credentials they can see I’m a staunch Christian conservative, and they are saying ‘wait a minute.’”

The Georgia businessman drew rousing applause at a recent Values Voters Summit in Washington. His stump speeches are marked by references to God.

Perry has a strong track record among religious voters, organizing a rally just before entering the race for the White House that drew 30,000 people.

Religious voters hold sway in choosing the Republican nominee, especially in some early states such as Iowa and South Carolina.

Cain was barnstorming across Tennessee on Saturday, completing a bus tour. Polls show him vaulting to the top tier of the GOP contest.