Although nobody took a poll, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani seemed the clear favorite at last week’s Republican Jewish Coalition presidential candidates forum.

But even though he has been polling well among evangelical voters, Giuliani got a dose of bad news at the “Values Voter Summit” over the weekend, an event sponsored by the conservative Family Research Council.

In a straw poll among 1500-plus activists at the convention and another 4500 online, Giuliani finished eighth out of nine candidates, despite his into-the-lions-den appearance and his promise to appoint only conservative judges.

“People of good conscience come to different conclusions about whether abortions should be legal in some circumstances,” he told the group. “But you and I…share the same goal: a country without abortion, achieved by changing the minds and hearts of people.”

The official winner was former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who has been fighting hard to overcome the anti-Mormon views of many evangelical Christians.

But the big winner may have been former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who finished just a few votes behind Romney. Huckabee, an ordained Baptist minister, told delegates “I come today as one not who comes to you, but as one who comes from you. You are my roots.’’

Huckabee also stands to gain from last week's decision by Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kans.) to end his cash-starved quest for the GOP nomination -- despite telling the RJC crowd that he'd stick it out to the Iowa caucuses.  Brownback and Huckabee have the strongest connections to the Christian conservative faction of the party of any of the current contenders.

As for Giuliani, University of Virginia political scientist Larry Sabato said his eighth place finish in the “values voters” straw poll isn’t necessarily terrible news for Giuliani.

“In my view, Rudy actually gained from that appearance,” Sabato said. “He was never going to get their votes in the primaries, but they saw that he doesn’t have horns and he took some positions that will make it easier for most of them to swallow hard and vote for him in November, should he be the GOP nominee.”

Huckabee, he said, still faces two big obstacles: money and organization. But Sabato added this: “I’d add this: there is no real favorite for the GOP nomination. Almost anything can happen.”