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Obama leading in conservative Georgia
Last Updated Feb 2008
By Add Seymour
Special to the AFRO
ATLANTA (Saturday, February 2, 2008) – At the near center of Georgia is Atlanta, the African-American Mecca, the sophisticated economic engine that houses offices for nearly each one of the nation’s Fortune 500 companies, the liberal-leaning headquarters to the nation’s busiest airport, a favorite these days for the country’s rap and hip-hop recording industry and “The City Too Busy To Hate.”
But Atlanta is not Georgia. In Georgia, there is Atlanta, and then the rest of the state.
Georgia voted for President George Bush in both of his election bids. In 2001, the state elected its first Republican governor since Reconstruction.
Georgia is mostly rural and conservative. A ride through the countryside reveals mostly trees and flatlands accompanied by flat Southern drawls.
It is there, however, that the impact of Illinois Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential candidacy becomes startlingly clear.
In one of those places, Augusta, a few hours east of Atlanta on thestate’s eastern edge, Obama is a constant topic of discussion.
“My friends talk about him,” said Chester Wheeler, Augusta’s director of Housing and Development. “They respect him. We’re delighted that he is African American, but he is also committed to changing the world. He happens to be black.”
As the state heads towards a historic primary Tuesday, Obama, and to a lesser degree, his rival, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, are on most people’s tongues.
"Obama, along with singer John Legend, was campaigning before hundreds during a stop today at Spellman College..."
Obama and Clinton have been campaigning heavily in the state in preparation for Super Tuesday, when Georgia and 21 other states hold primaries.
Both have been running a series of television ads touting their candidacies.
Clinton has visited the state recently, and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, stumped in Atlanta Friday.
Obama, along with singer John Legend, was campaigning before hundreds during a stop today at Spellman College, just across the street from Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University. All three schools are members of the historically Black Atlanta University Center.
No major polls are out yet, but some minor ones have placed Obama far ahead of Clinton.
Meanwhile, the state’s largest and most influential newspaper, the Atlanta Journal Constitution, which has a White woman editor, endorsed Obama.
"While both Clinton and Obama would make good presidents, Obama is the person," the newspaper said in its endorsement. "This is his time."
Even in the uneven state of Georgia, one thing has become consistently clear, Obama’s campaign has lit fires across the state of Georgia.
“It’s just an amazing thing to see,” said Tonya Williams, an Atlanta public relations consultant. “This candidate has energized Black voters, White voters, young, old, little old White women and Black women.”
Williams is a volunteer in Obama’s Atlanta office, where the diversity of his supporters is immediately evident. They are young, old, Black, White and Asian, men and women.
On Saturday, his supporters could be seen out in neighborhoods across Atlanta.
A group of Morehouse College students have been feverishly working in Obama’s campaign, even making three trips to South Carolina to help canvass during that state’s primary.
Predominantly White Georgia Tech has been the scene of a Obama rally where nearly 20,000 people turned out.
Hundreds of Obama volunteers, who are often paired with someone from an opposite race, have been going door to door, stumping for his campaign.
Young people in the region who have backed Democrats are becoming more and more enthralled by Obama’s talk of hope and change.
And in a place like Atlanta where the Black female vote is coveted, Obama and his wife, Michelle, have made deep inroads.
“They make an incredible team,” Williams said. “The genuine respect they have for each other is obvious. Black women in Georgia hear in his voice, in his words and in his background the empathy that he feels for African American women.”
Think of Georgia and the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. immediately spring to mind.
Many of his foot soldiers, like the Rev. Joseph Lowery of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) are still working towards King’s dream.
Obama’s campaign has caused some tremors in within that civil rights community and among King’s followers.
Lewis, who was the youngest person to speak at the March on Washington in 1963, has backed Clinton’s bid.
Andrew Young, former Atlanta mayor and U.S. ambassador, also is backing Clinton and has questioned whether Obama is ready for the presidency.
But Lowery has been solidly behind Obama and has questioned those Blacks who say they won’t support Obama because he doesn’t have enough experienced.
Rural Georgia is rural Georgia and will still be a tough sell for Obama.
But it’s all been enough to make Wheeler, 55, proud.
“I have been delighted to see him rise to the status where he is,” Wheeler said. “It’s evident that he’s an intelligent and respectful and can connect with people of any race.”
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Obama leading in conservative Georgia
Last Updated Feb 2008
By Add Seymour
Special to the AFRO
ATLANTA (Saturday, February 2, 2008) – At the near center of Georgia is Atlanta, the African-American Mecca, the sophisticated economic engine that houses offices for nearly each one of the nation’s Fortune 500 companies, the liberal-leaning headquarters to the nation’s busiest airport, a favorite these days for the country’s rap and hip-hop recording industry and “The City Too Busy To Hate.”
But Atlanta is not Georgia. In Georgia, there is Atlanta, and then the rest of the state.
Georgia voted for President George Bush in both of his election bids. In 2001, the state elected its first Republican governor since Reconstruction.
Georgia is mostly rural and conservative. A ride through the countryside reveals mostly trees and flatlands accompanied by flat Southern drawls.
It is there, however, that the impact of Illinois Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential candidacy becomes startlingly clear.
In one of those places, Augusta, a few hours east of Atlanta on thestate’s eastern edge, Obama is a constant topic of discussion.
“My friends talk about him,” said Chester Wheeler, Augusta’s director of Housing and Development. “They respect him. We’re delighted that he is African American, but he is also committed to changing the world. He happens to be black.”
As the state heads towards a historic primary Tuesday, Obama, and to a lesser degree, his rival, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, are on most people’s tongues.
"Obama, along with singer John Legend, was campaigning before hundreds during a stop today at Spellman College..."
Obama and Clinton have been campaigning heavily in the state in preparation for Super Tuesday, when Georgia and 21 other states hold primaries.
Both have been running a series of television ads touting their candidacies.
Clinton has visited the state recently, and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, stumped in Atlanta Friday.
Obama, along with singer John Legend, was campaigning before hundreds during a stop today at Spellman College, just across the street from Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University. All three schools are members of the historically Black Atlanta University Center.
No major polls are out yet, but some minor ones have placed Obama far ahead of Clinton.
Meanwhile, the state’s largest and most influential newspaper, the Atlanta Journal Constitution, which has a White woman editor, endorsed Obama.
"While both Clinton and Obama would make good presidents, Obama is the person," the newspaper said in its endorsement. "This is his time."
Even in the uneven state of Georgia, one thing has become consistently clear, Obama’s campaign has lit fires across the state of Georgia.
“It’s just an amazing thing to see,” said Tonya Williams, an Atlanta public relations consultant. “This candidate has energized Black voters, White voters, young, old, little old White women and Black women.”
Williams is a volunteer in Obama’s Atlanta office, where the diversity of his supporters is immediately evident. They are young, old, Black, White and Asian, men and women.
On Saturday, his supporters could be seen out in neighborhoods across Atlanta.
A group of Morehouse College students have been feverishly working in Obama’s campaign, even making three trips to South Carolina to help canvass during that state’s primary.
Predominantly White Georgia Tech has been the scene of a Obama rally where nearly 20,000 people turned out.
Hundreds of Obama volunteers, who are often paired with someone from an opposite race, have been going door to door, stumping for his campaign.
Young people in the region who have backed Democrats are becoming more and more enthralled by Obama’s talk of hope and change.
And in a place like Atlanta where the Black female vote is coveted, Obama and his wife, Michelle, have made deep inroads.
“They make an incredible team,” Williams said. “The genuine respect they have for each other is obvious. Black women in Georgia hear in his voice, in his words and in his background the empathy that he feels for African American women.”
Think of Georgia and the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. immediately spring to mind.
Many of his foot soldiers, like the Rev. Joseph Lowery of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) are still working towards King’s dream.
Obama’s campaign has caused some tremors in within that civil rights community and among King’s followers.
Lewis, who was the youngest person to speak at the March on Washington in 1963, has backed Clinton’s bid.
Andrew Young, former Atlanta mayor and U.S. ambassador, also is backing Clinton and has questioned whether Obama is ready for the presidency.
But Lowery has been solidly behind Obama and has questioned those Blacks who say they won’t support Obama because he doesn’t have enough experienced.
Rural Georgia is rural Georgia and will still be a tough sell for Obama.
But it’s all been enough to make Wheeler, 55, proud.
“I have been delighted to see him rise to the status where he is,” Wheeler said. “It’s evident that he’s an intelligent and respectful and can connect with people of any race.”
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U Street Washington D.C. November 4, 2008
Photos: K.M. Vance
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November 4, 2008: Election News
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Obama leading in conservative Georgia
Last Updated Feb 2008
By Add Seymour
Special to the AFRO
ATLANTA (Saturday, February 2, 2008) – At the near center of Georgia is Atlanta, the African-American Mecca, the sophisticated economic engine that houses offices for nearly each one of the nation’s Fortune 500 companies, the liberal-leaning headquarters to the nation’s busiest airport, a favorite these days for the country’s rap and hip-hop recording industry and “The City Too Busy To Hate.”
But Atlanta is not Georgia. In Georgia, there is Atlanta, and then the rest of the state.
Georgia voted for President George Bush in both of his election bids. In 2001, the state elected its first Republican governor since Reconstruction.
Georgia is mostly rural and conservative. A ride through the countryside reveals mostly trees and flatlands accompanied by flat Southern drawls.
It is there, however, that the impact of Illinois Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential candidacy becomes startlingly clear.
In one of those places, Augusta, a few hours east of Atlanta on thestate’s eastern edge, Obama is a constant topic of discussion.
“My friends talk about him,” said Chester Wheeler, Augusta’s director of Housing and Development. “They respect him. We’re delighted that he is African American, but he is also committed to changing the world. He happens to be black.”
As the state heads towards a historic primary Tuesday, Obama, and to a lesser degree, his rival, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, are on most people’s tongues.
"Obama, along with singer John Legend, was campaigning before hundreds during a stop today at Spellman College..."
Obama and Clinton have been campaigning heavily in the state in preparation for Super Tuesday, when Georgia and 21 other states hold primaries.
Both have been running a series of television ads touting their candidacies.
Clinton has visited the state recently, and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, stumped in Atlanta Friday.
Obama, along with singer John Legend, was campaigning before hundreds during a stop today at Spellman College, just across the street from Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University. All three schools are members of the historically Black Atlanta University Center.
No major polls are out yet, but some minor ones have placed Obama far ahead of Clinton.
Meanwhile, the state’s largest and most influential newspaper, the Atlanta Journal Constitution, which has a White woman editor, endorsed Obama.
"While both Clinton and Obama would make good presidents, Obama is the person," the newspaper said in its endorsement. "This is his time."
Even in the uneven state of Georgia, one thing has become consistently clear, Obama’s campaign has lit fires across the state of Georgia.
“It’s just an amazing thing to see,” said Tonya Williams, an Atlanta public relations consultant. “This candidate has energized Black voters, White voters, young, old, little old White women and Black women.”
Williams is a volunteer in Obama’s Atlanta office, where the diversity of his supporters is immediately evident. They are young, old, Black, White and Asian, men and women.
On Saturday, his supporters could be seen out in neighborhoods across Atlanta.
A group of Morehouse College students have been feverishly working in Obama’s campaign, even making three trips to South Carolina to help canvass during that state’s primary.
Predominantly White Georgia Tech has been the scene of a Obama rally where nearly 20,000 people turned out.
Hundreds of Obama volunteers, who are often paired with someone from an opposite race, have been going door to door, stumping for his campaign.
Young people in the region who have backed Democrats are becoming more and more enthralled by Obama’s talk of hope and change.
And in a place like Atlanta where the Black female vote is coveted, Obama and his wife, Michelle, have made deep inroads.
“They make an incredible team,” Williams said. “The genuine respect they have for each other is obvious. Black women in Georgia hear in his voice, in his words and in his background the empathy that he feels for African American women.”
Think of Georgia and the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. immediately spring to mind.
Many of his foot soldiers, like the Rev. Joseph Lowery of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) are still working towards King’s dream.
Obama’s campaign has caused some tremors in within that civil rights community and among King’s followers.
Lewis, who was the youngest person to speak at the March on Washington in 1963, has backed Clinton’s bid.
Andrew Young, former Atlanta mayor and U.S. ambassador, also is backing Clinton and has questioned whether Obama is ready for the presidency.
But Lowery has been solidly behind Obama and has questioned those Blacks who say they won’t support Obama because he doesn’t have enough experienced.
Rural Georgia is rural Georgia and will still be a tough sell for Obama.
But it’s all been enough to make Wheeler, 55, proud.
“I have been delighted to see him rise to the status where he is,” Wheeler said. “It’s evident that he’s an intelligent and respectful and can connect with people of any race.”
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LONG LINES IN D.C. METRO AREA
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Wyatt Green of Largo, Md. reads a newspaper at Largo Senior High School while waiting to cast his ballot with 10-year-old daughter Relle. (Photo by Khalid Naji Allah)
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Prince George’s County residents wait to vote outside of Bowie State University’s McKeldin Center.
(Photo by Ben Phillips)
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Bowie McKeldin Center Polling Site
(Photo by Ben Phillips)
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Helen Brown Hands out literature at Bowie State McKeldin Polling. (Photo by Ben Phillips)
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A supporter for D.C. at Large City Council Incumbant Kwame Brown prepares to set up a campaign literature post near Howard University. (Photo by Dorothy Rowley)
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Tanisha Brown (left) and Shani Ossutt, both 18-year-old D.C. residents, were ecstatic about being able to vote for the first time. (Photo by Dorothy Rowley)
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Maria Augburn and Tairon Dingle arrive at a voting precinct in D.C. Ward 5. (Photo by Dorothy Rowley)
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Bennie Murray, 84, is assisted to his polling place in D.C. by his daughter Velinia Daniels, 46, of Fort Washington, Md. (Photo by Dorothy)
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Voters wrap around the perimeter of Friendly High School in Fort Washington, Md. (Photo by Alan King)
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