Rev. Jim Nelson will seek to become Chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia

The following comes from Atlanta Political Party about the Rev. Jim Nelson of Savannah who ran for Congress to represent the 1st Congressional District and now is filing to run for Chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia:

Looking back on that contest [for Congress], Nelson says a lethargic, poorly organized Democratic Party failed to extend a hand to him and other candidates beyond the metro Atlanta region -- with a few exceptions.

The national party poured all of its money only into what it deemed clear-cut competitive races: Burns-Barrow and Marshall-Collins. At the state level, the Taylor-Cox primary battle was a money drain, Nelson says. In the general election, all of the funding went to Taylor. Candidates in the so-called hinterlands were left in an every-man-for-himself posture. Even still, "I raised $100,000 for my campaign," Nelson says of his District 1 bid.

Organization phobia wasn't the only factor at work within the upper echelons of the Democratic Party.

"There was no real excitement coming from the party," laments Nelson. "The state convention was a good example. It was almost like being at a boring business meeting. We needed more fanfare. More signs. We need to be organized to win."

Nelson thinks he can deliver some energy.

There's no doubt he has the oratory, honed apparently from the pulpit.

Married for 34 years, Nelson served as an airborne infantry officer and worked as an instructor at Fort Gordon in the waning months of Vietnam. He received his undergraduate degree in speech and theater and his first master's degree in political science. He said he also received a master's degree in divinity and did his doctoral work in faith and ethics. He has been a church pastor for 17 years. Columns he wrote for newspapers coupled with ideas from his thesis became the basis for a book, Where Would Jesus Put the Sidewalks?, which examines the political and ethical rationale communities exercise in making decisions about how to fund public projects.

Nelson sees a widening gap between the rich and the poor, and is bothered by government's sluggish response to the needs of low- and moderate-income citizens, and its willingness to soothe the powerful at the expense of the vulnerable.

"When you look at things Scripture really focuses on, it's basically about taking care of one another... being there for one another," he says. "A fair minimum wage, health care for all, equality of opportunity for education, early childhood care, these are more Democratic than Republican issues."