WASHINGTON -- Talk about cold comfort.

Mitt Romney, who dropped out of the Republican presidential race on Thursday, won a straw poll of conservative activists on Saturday, edging out likely nominee John McCain.

Ballots for the straw poll conducted at the Conservative Political Action Conference were collected Thursday morning through Friday afternoon. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, quit the race in a midday speech to the conference on Thursday.

In the straw poll vote, Romney got 35 percent and McCain 34 percent. Mike Huckabee and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas tied with 12 percent.

Romney won the straw poll at the conference last year.

On another question, two-thirds said they would vote for McCain if he's the eventual nominee, two in 10 said they would vote for someone else and about one in 10 said they would not vote.