CEOs prefer Giuliani for president

— -- CEOs tend to be students of leadership and strategy, and so it comes as no surprise to Pew Research President Andy Kohut that CEOs are attracted to Rudy Giuliani's "strong leadership image."

CEOs have wealth, power and influence, but also are part of a demographic too small to have been analyzed like soccer moms and NASCAR dads. But what little research there is, including an unscientific survey of 154 CEOs by USA TODAY, suggests that they are not monolithic. Two in five vote Democratic. But the typical CEO would vote for Giuliani, which supports the long-held belief that executives worry less about social positions on abortion and gun control and more about fiscal issues such as the economy and federal deficits. CEOs are also pragmatic and see Giuliani as the best hope for a Republican victory a year from now.

Many CEOs said they were far from firm in their decision. But USA TODAY gave them no option to be undecided. They were told that they had to vote as if the election were today. Giuliani got 25% of the CEO vote, followed by Hillary Clinton (19%), Mitt Romney (16%), Barack Obama (13%) and John McCain (9%).

A small portion of CEOs, including Tony Cataldo, CEO of telecommunications company VoIP Inc. in Altamonte Springs, Fla., are so disappointed that Republicans have lost their fiscal compass that they are prepared to jump parties.

"I just hope Hillary does as good a job as Bill (Clinton) on welfare reform, balancing the budget, lower taxes and improving schools," says Steve Hafner, who helped found Orbitz and is now CEO of Kayak.com in Norwalk, Conn. "I'm a lifelong Republican, but the sad truth is that the GOP has lost its way."

'Rational decisions'

"When Bill Clinton was in office, he made rational decisions, which equated to financial surplus. Now, the country is faced with huge deficits that could prove to be the most significant financial crisis we've seen in nearly a century," says Jordan Wirsz, CEO of Diamond Bay Investments in Las Vegas, who plans to vote for Hillary Clinton.