DEL.ICIO.USUpdated: 1:18 a.m. November 05, 2008
ELECTION 2008
Georgia Republicans proud of turnout for Chambliss, McCain
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Georgia Republicans celebrated the strong showing of John McCain and Senator Saxby Chambliss at the Intercontinental Hotel in Buckhead.
At five minutes to midnight, Alec Poitevint, a National Committeeman for the Republican National Committee, and chairman of the McCain campaign in Georgia, said that he’s very proud of the Republican’s performance in Georgia.
Curtis Compton, ccompton@ajc.com/AJC
U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss reacts as Fox News declared him a victor Tuesday by saying ‘we’re still not there, we still have a long way to go. It’s going to be a long night.’ With Chambliss are his mother, Emma Chamliss, center and wife Julianne.
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Dec. 2 runoff voting:
Photos:
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Nov. 4 voting:
'Despite being outspent by the Obama campaign, the GOP galvanized an “army of 40,000” campaign volunteers and Chambliss engaged in “old-fashioned, retail politics” to reach the GOP base in Georgia, he said.
After traveling on Chambliss’ tour bus for 14 days, said Poitevint, he “knew it was possible” to win Georgia, but also knew “it was going to be close.”
He called McCain’s concession speech “elegant and just the sort of speech you’d expect from McCain,”
Still, he said he believed McCain was a “true agent of change. I was for the McCain brand of change.”
Chambliss was upbeat when he arrived about 8:30 p.m.
“We feel like we have the wind at our back,” Chambliss said.
Several hundred people—some in straw hats—turned out for the event.
Gov. Sonny Perdue said he was pleased that there appeared to be few problems with voting in Georgia.
As for the Chambliss race, he expressed confidence that Chambliss would win with a double-digit lead. “It looks like Georgia is solidly in [the Republican] camp,” he said.
Regarding the presidential race, Perdue said, “Whoever is elected president will be president of the United States of America. And I would expect the next president will take care of Georgia.”
He said he didn’t see much impact from the presidential race on Georgia’s Congressional races.
“I don’t think there’s much fall off from the presidential race.”
Republican state Rep. David Shafer, who represents North Fulton and Gwinnett and was re-elected without opposition Tuesday, said he was cautiously optimistic about McCain winning Georgia but concerned that no other networks had called the state.
Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle called the negative campaigning between Republican Chambliss and his Democratic challenger Jim Martin “unfortunate.” He said that the Democratic National Committee “threw a lot of money at Georgia,” but that Chambliss defended his “real record.”
Cagle admitted to some nerves saying “there’s always a little anxiety” waiting for the results. But, he added, the “polling numbers look very good” and he expects Chambliss to win without a runoff.
Sen. Johnny Isackson at Saxby Chambliss’ election night party, said he believes Chambliss will win without a runoff.
Isakson also said, “I think John McCain peaked at the right time.”
A big cheer went up at about 8:40 p.m. when Fox News projected that McCain will win Georgia.
Reacting to Fox News calling Georgia for McCain, U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey, a Republican, said he “wasn’t surprised. Georgia is solidly red, conservative and Republican.”
He said that it may have taken a while for McCain to hit his stride because his advisers may have “told him to be cool” because he’s known to be “feisty.”
“It took a little bit of wind out his sails,” said Gingrey, at the McCain/Chambliss party at the InterContinental Hotel in Buckhead. But he said McCain finally “became McCain” and “closed quickly. I thought that McCain did unusually well in the last month.”
He also admitted there were some missteps by the McCain campaign, including the $150,000 wardrobe purchased by the Republican party for running mate Sarah Palin. “That’s not her,” Gingrey said.
But despite the mistakes and Obama’s lead in fund-raising in Georgia, Gingrey said, “it didn’t work.”
An unlikely attendee at the Republican party was former DeKalb County CEO Vernon Jones, a Democrat.
Why was he there? Being a reporter. He was helping John Fredericks, publisher of Roswell-based Beacon Media, with a live Web cast of the election results from the party. The Web cast is at beaconcast.com.
“I’m here reporting on the election results,” he said. “People are interested and are voting their pocketbooks.”
Another sighting at the party was local political wunderkind Jonathan Krohn of Duluth. The 13-year-old has written a book, “Defining Conservatism,” that earned him interviews on local and national TV and radio talk shows.
In the book, he attempted to define conservatism after he heard so many decrying McCain’s conservative credentials.
So far, he said, he’s only sold about 500 copies of the book, which his mom Marla Krohn said he spent his whole summer writing. The book sells for $13.50 a pop.
But Jonathan seemed well-known to the politicians in the room, and was sporting his “Maverick/Barracuda” pin. The well-spoken youngster volunteered for the McCain campaign and said he has not ruled out running for public office one day.
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