Obama Enters Georgia Race, Symbolically -- Both Sides in Senate Runoff Invoke the President-Elect's Name to Sway Voters

I did a 11-11-08 post entitled "Will Obama come to Georgia to campaign for Jim Martin? No. Count on it. You can take it to the bank."

That post linked to an excellent discussion of the topic in an article by Jim Tharpe in the AJC.

Jim Galloway of the AJC's Political Insider first set the stage for this high national profile runoff on October 26, 2008, when he wrote:

A scenario is quickly unfolding in which you’re likely to see much more of Barack Obama in Georgia.

Not now, not before next Tuesday.

We’re talking afterwards, when the U.S. Senate race in Georgia becomes the only important, unresolved contest in the nation.

Whether Democrats reach a filibuster-proof 60 seats in nine days makes no difference. A Georgia Senate run-off would not only be the final act of the nation’s 2008 political season, but would provide a first political test for a President-elect Obama — if he should accept the challenge.

African-Americans in Georgia might not turn out a second time for the less-than-charismatic Martin, one strategist told us. But they would walk across hot coals if President-elect Obama personally asked them to.

Today The Washington Post has a great article on this runoff. It notes:

One week after his historic victory, President-elect Barack Obama has become a critical figure in Georgia's runoff election for a Senate seat, a contest that will help determine the size of the Democratic majority Obama will have to help move his agenda.

In campaign commercials and surrogate appearances for the candidates on the Dec. 2 ballot, Obama has been symbolically injected into the race, putting his political clout to an early test.

Former state representative Jim Martin (D) has embraced Obama in advertisements touting Obama's stirring election-night speech and in issue statements proclaiming his willingness to work with the incoming president. More than 100 Obama campaign volunteers, mostly foot soldiers from neighboring states, are heading to Georgia to help with voter turnout operations.

Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R), the first-term incumbent, has called the runoff the first race of the 2010 midterm elections. A parade of top Republicans is stumping for Chambliss, including Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), who on Thursday will make his first political appearance since losing to Obama last week. McCain's former running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, has a standing invitation to appear for Chambliss, as do several other aspirants for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.

"It all comes down to Georgia. Don't give Obama a rubberstamp Senate," the National Republican Senatorial Committee declares in an advertisement that dominates its Web site's home page. The ad includes images of newscasters announcing the results of the presidential election and the growing Democratic majorities in Congress.

The Georgia race is one of three undecided Senate battles in the 2008 campaign, all of which Democrats need to win to reach their goal of a filibuster-proof 60 seats.

[T]he overriding issue in the race is Obama's election. His advisers declined to comment on whether Obama would campaign in Georgia, as then-President-elect Bill Clinton did in a runoff Senate election in the state in December 1992. In that race, the Democratic candidate eventually lost.

Turnout is expected to drop precipitously in the runoff, with no other statewide race on the ballot and -- particularly for African Americans, who turned out in huge numbers in Georgia last week to help make history -- no Obama to vote for. That is why Martin is crossing his fingers that Obama will stump on his behalf.

Chambliss has invited every prominent Georgia Republican to appear with him and McCain in Atlanta. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee is expected over the weekend, and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney may appear soon. The approach is simple, aides said: to appeal to the state's traditionally conservative base.