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Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Betting beers on November
Citified types give Perdue, Cagle a wide edge; Democrat Hecht nearly matches Reed
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
‘Tis the season to gather in Savannah for conventions. Without Mark Taylor.
It’s the turn of the Georgia Municipal Association this week. And as is standard, in preparation for the gathering, the organization polled its membership of mayors and city council types about major political races. Responses came from 331 members, about 21 percent.
Does it matter? Not that much. But it’s clear, and possibly important, that GMA members are less impressed with the Democratic candidates for governor than they were last year. In 2005, Sonny Perdue barely edged out Cathy Cox. Mark Taylor came in third.
Here’s how things stand now — and remember that members aren’t asked who they support. The question is who will win:
Perdue: 72 percent; Cox: 14.8 percent; Taylor: 10.6 percent; and Don’t Know: 2.6 percent.
“City officials predicted that Sonny Perdue would defeat Roy Barnes in 2002, so maybe they’re on to something again this year with the margin of victory for him,” said GMA executive director Jim Higdon in the formal press release.
The GMA also asked members to forecast the November race for lieutenant governor. Confidence isn’t high, if “don’t know” is any measure. Here’s the bottom line:
Casey Cagle (R): 43.4 percent; Don’t Know: 32.8 percent; Ralph Reed (R): 9 percent; Greg Hecht (D): 8 percent; Jim Martin (D): 6.1 percent; and Steen Miles (D): .6 percent
Always a show-off when it comes to fund-raising
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
One of our spotters found this in The Hill, the newspaper that covers the Capitol — the one in D.C.:
“Wal-Mart’s contributions to national political candidates have increased steadily in recent years, and Republicans are on the receiving end of most of the giving. In the 2004 election cycle, Wal-Mart’s PAC gave more than $1.3 million to Republicans and $370,000 to Democrats.
“Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.) received the most, with $17,500, and dozens got $10,000 or more.”
The speaker makes a pick in a House primary
And it's not the rally-the-base candidate you'd expect
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The most notable political news of the day may have been Speaker Glenn Richardson’s decision to step into a Republican race for the House.
Richardson on Wednesday endorsed Mark Williams, a business leader in Jesup, in the Republican contest to replace retiring state Rep. Hinson Mosley in District 178. Interestingly, the speaker used the phrase “common-sense conservative” to describe Williams.
The other candidate in that race is Kay Godwin, a Republican grassroots organizer who was essential in Gov. Sonny Perdue’s 2002 victory. She lost a close race against Mosley two years ago.
Godwin has deep, deep ties to Christian conservatives across the state. She’s also a firm backer of Ralph Reed for lieutenant governor. Williams is behind Reed’s primary opponent, Casey Cagle. Circles within circles within circles.
