The majority of polling data suggests that former President Donald Trump is set to become the Republican Party's nominee.

While there is extensive speculation over who Trump will pick as his running mate, a recently released survey suggests that many conservatives have made up their minds. 

Tie between South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem and Vivek Ramaswamy

According to Newsweek, the survey was conducted by McLaughlin & Associates from February 21 to February 24 among attendees 1,478 at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).

.@CPAC 2024 straw poll results: @KristiNoem and @VivekGRamaswamy tie for Trump VP pickhttps://t.co/VYEGLlWHbb pic.twitter.com/R8HeIYue51

— CPAC (@CPAC) February 25, 2024

It found that South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy are roughly tied for first place.

Next came former Hawaii Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard at 9% while New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik and South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott each received support from 8% of respondents.

Expert says identity of Trump's running mate won't be known until summer

Christopher Devine is an author and associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton, and he told Newsweek that the identity of Trump's running mate likely won't be known for some time.

"It is early in that process and I do not expect that Donald Trump will make his decision until the summer," Devine pointed out.

"But that won't stop VP aspirants from auditioning for the role. And CPAC gives them the stage to do it," he conceded. While it may not be clear who else will be on this year's Republican ticket, there are two people who have apparently been ruled out.

One of them is Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who told supporters on a conference call last week that he isn't interested in becoming vice president.

Trump campaign rules out DeSantis and Haley

"People were mentioning me," the Washington Times quoted him as saying. "I am not doing that. I know some people are really actively seeking it."

Meanwhile, Trump spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told the paper that DeSantis' name is not being considered anyway.

Also out of the running is United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, someone who was called persona non grata earlier this month by Trump campaign official Justin Evans.

"Everything the George Bush-Karl Rove wing of the party is embodied in Nikki Haley and represented by Nikki Haley," Evans told CNN.

"This is their last gasp, and they know that if they lose this, they’re going to have almost an impossible task of regaining any kind of foothold not only in this election, but in the party," he went on to declare.