Fresh Loaf

As the July 15 primaries approach, we at CL wanted to give our readers a recap of some of the most important races. Let’s call it our Ad-hoc, Incremental, Online Voter Guide!

Let’s start with the Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate. They’re fighting for the honor to take on first-term Republican (and Bush hand-maiden) Saxby Chambliss.

Polls taken at different points in the race have shown a close race, generally with Vernon Jones ahead, followed by Dale Cardwell, Jim Martin and Rand Knight. But a recent Rasmussen poll showed Martin (a late entry, but the best-funded candidate) on an upward trajectory. None of the polls has shown candidate Josh Lanier gaining much traction with voters.

But, apart from their poll numbers, what do we know about these guys?

• Dale Cardwell, 45, quit his job last summer as a longtime WSB-TV/Channel 2 reporter to restyle himself as a conservative Senate candidate. He’s sort of the Lou Dobbs of the race: He takes a hard-line stance on immigration, supports limits on free trade and wants to replace, not reform, the IRS. But Cardwell’s loudest and most consistent massage has been about the corrupting influence of PAC money on politicians; he’s taken no contributions from PACs or registered lobbyists. While his campaign media is high-quality, Cardwell’s running something of a shoestring campaign. In January, he spent several days hanging from a downtown smokestack in a bid for press coverage. Just this week, he earned an endorsement from the Macon Telegraph.
• DeKalb CEO Vernon Jones, 47, entered the Senate race early and has been busy traveling the state and covering the landscape with campaign signs. He presents himself as a conservative Democrat, even bragging that he voted for President Bush – twice. He takes few risky positions – we need to support our troops in Iraq until they come home; we need to brainstorm fixes for Social Security; health care should be affordable and accessible; etc. But his personal history — alleged physical confrontations with female political opponents, a false residency claim, a ménage à trois defense against a rape allegation — isn’t lacking for controversy. Jones’ appeal to voters, however, probably lies more in his personal charisma, his name recognition and the fact that he’s the only black candidate in the race.
• Rand Knight is a 36-year-old Atlanta businessman with a doctorate in ecology who, like Cardwell and Lanier, is running as a not-politics-as-usual candidate. He’s also promoting himself as a greenie who would work to protect the environment and decrease America’s oil dependency. A main platform is his “Green Deal” to create incentives for private-sector investment in such environmentally friendly industries as energy efficiency. Knight surprised cynical politicos by picking up endorsements from the AFL-CIO, the Georgia Association of Educators and the National Education Association. He’s an intense guy who’s never been in the public eye before, so it’s fair to wonder how he’d handle public office.
• Josh Lanier, 55, of Statesboro is a former Senate staffer, lobbyist and businessman who spent much of his adult life in Washington. However, he’s running what he calls an “un-campaign,” which means no campaign staff, no advertising and no contributions of more than $100. A Vietnam veteran, he supports closing Guantanamo, ending the Iraq occupation and providing better services to troubled vets.
• Attorney Jim Martin, 62, has to be considered the Democratic establishment candidate. He served in the Georgia House for 18 years, was tapped by Gov. Roy Barnes to head the Department of Human Resources, ran unsuccessfully two years ago for lieutenant governor and was coaxed into the Senate race by D.C. power-brokers. He’s also a Vietnam vet who got into the race late and has concentrated on out-fund-raising the other candidates. His campaign seems to be relying more on his experience and reputation (as well as lots of late TV ads) than on pushing novel ideas or initiatives. Last month, he took the AJC’s endorsement.

More on the candidates from the League of Women Voters of Georgia and Project Vote Smart.

Any other thoughts about the candidates, their campaigns or their chances are welcome. Link here to guides on more races.

Bookmark It

Posted in News | Leave a comment

Tags: 2008 primary voter guide, 2008 Senate Runoff, 2008-senate-race, dale cardwell, Georgia-Democratic-primary, Jim-Martin, Josh-Lanier, Rand-Knight, Vernon-Jones.