NPR: Georgia Democrats Say Obama Campaign Gives Lift

Georgia Democrats Say Obama Campaign Gives Lift

Democrats in Georgia are saying that the campaign of Sen. Barack Obama will give them the best chance they've had in years to wage a competitive fight against Republicans in the southern state.

"We're seeing a lot of enthusiasm for our candidates that we haven't seen in past cycles," State Rep. Rob Teilhet (D-Smyrna), the man charged with leading candidate recruitment for House Democrats in Georgia, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He said Obama has already given the party a lift.

Boosting Democratic hopes is the fact that many Georgia Republicans are saying publicly and privately that they are concerned about Obama's influence on the November elections and about the impact their own very public infighting will have on their base.
All of this has likely made Teilhet's job easier than it would have been in past years. In 2006, the last time the 180 House seats were up for election, 129 races were uncontested, meaning there was only one candidate on the ballot. Of the remaining 51 races, only 10 were competitive, meaning the outcome was decided by about 10 percentage points.

While Teilhet declined to discuss specifics of the party's strategy, he said the party has identified 30 to 35 House districts that "are either competitive or may become competitive."

Unlike the past, when Republicans excelled at organizing, the Democrats are using "Vote Builder," a high-tech system of tracking registered voters, voter contact and demographic data that the party has lacked. The Obama campaign has helped add thousands of names to the system.

Republicans are more than aware of the problem. Ben Fry, executive director of the Georgia Republican Party, said he "won't let controversies over Obama's comments about Pennsylvania voters, or the controversy over his former pastor's rhetoric, lull him into thinking that an Obama bounce won't materialize."

7:43 AM ET | 04-28-2008 | permalink

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