Special Election - 6th Congressional District (Atlanta, Millen: train, registering, progressive)

[bu2]

Originally Posted by jas75

That would be quite a partisan shift for the district if Ossoff actually ends up winning next month. But other polls have generally suggested a tossup and the question is probably about who will take the time to vote.

That's exactly it. We know lots of people in the 5th district who are really, really excited about Ossoff, but they can't vote in the 6th. Neither can all of those out of state people coming to work in his campaign or Californians contributing. Question is who in the 6th will vote. Could easily be 60-40 either way if one side turns out better, but probably will be close.

[atler8]

Originally Posted by bu2

That's exactly it. We know lots of people in the 5th district who are really, really excited about Ossoff, but they can't vote in the 6th. Neither can all of those out of state people coming to work in his campaign or Californians contributing. Question is who in the 6th will vote. Could easily be 60-40 either way if one side turns out better, but probably will be close.

I've written here earlier about my pragmatic view of the election in this district which has been a hard right district historically. Nevertheless, I'm optimistic that Democrats & the Independents who seem to have swung to support Ossoff will turn out in large & energized numbers to give an upset.
As to your latest comment, I know that you are partisan, as I certainly am, but I feel that it's unnecessary for you to constantly denigrate Democratic candidates &/or the people who are inclined to vote for them or people who otherwise support them. You know full well that much financial support from outside of the district & from the national RNC apparatus has poured into the campaign in support of Handel so let's just call it a draw & not disparage everything "California". California is such an easy target for so many reasons but be aware that the same is true of your home state of Texas.
And be assured that there are PLENTY of constituents IN the 6th district who are excited about Ossoff & who will vote for him.

[arjay57]

Ossoff's got a good message of fiscal conservatism and common sense. Plus he's not a career politician with decades of baggage like his opponent.

He should do well.

[Chevalier de Saint-George]

Two hours ago I heard some campaign commercial on the radio where it was a comically smug Californian talking about how Ossoff is one of their own and looking to enlighten Southerners with San Francisco values. I know that it was a smear campaign against Ossoff but it sounded like a SNL skit. That should have stayed on the shelf but it was funny more than anything.

[bu2]

Originally Posted by arjay57

Ossoff's got a good message of fiscal conservatism and common sense. Plus he's not a career politician with decades of baggage like his opponent.

He should do well.

While its a good message for this district, on his commercials, he sounds just like a career politician. The question is whether his message is real or just what he is saying to get elected. After working for Hank Johnson, its hard to believe his message really represents him.

Neither of the two have spent much time in real jobs. It would be nice to have more people in Washington who have experienced the real economy like the rest of us. That is a good part of the reason we have a President Trump and why Sanders resonated with the Democrats, too many people who don't get out the DC bubble.

[JoeP]

The fact that anyone even cares about that shows how desperate the left is to demonize Trump no matter what he does.

Oh bless your heart, attacking the left because of Trump's own words and actions.

He's on an epic tour that is going exceptionally well

Really, bless your heart.

[Nidster]

Originally Posted by Mutiny77

I mean Gabby Giffords was nearly killed, but I guess that's no big deal.

And let's not even talk about the enormous amounts of death threats Obama got.

Jared Lee Loughner gunned down Gabby Gifford and 18 other people, killing six, at a sidewalk political rally on 01/08/2011. Records show that Loughner was registered as an Independent and voted in 2006 and 2008, but not in 2010. According to a former friend, Bryce Tierney, Loughner had expressed a longstanding dislike for Gabby Gifford.

So, nowadays it appears to be a good idea to watch out for the Independants as well as the Democrats. And let's not even talk about the enormous number of death threats made against Obama as well as every other president.

[Born 2 Roll]

Donald Trump's unorthodox and often volatile presidency has had an undeniable effect on the special election to replace Tom Price in Georgia's 6th Congressional District by making a Democratic candidate highly competitive in a contest that might otherwise typically be a Republican laugher.

On Sunday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution ran a story about how Donald Trump also appears to be having an undeniable effect on the 2018 race for Georgia governor with many Republican gubernatorial candidates either strongly embracing Trump or distancing themselves from Trump.

President Donald Trump is shaking up the emerging race for Georgia governor, forcing Republicans to gamble on how closely to tie themselves to his presidency – and speeding up plans for Democrats who think they have a tantalizing opportunity to exploit his setbacks.

A fight is already under way on the GOP side of the ticket between candidates pledging to “drain the swamp” vying against more mainstream Republicans with long records of experience in public office who aren’t tying themselves directly to Trump’s presidency.

The battle lines have already being drawn: Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle didn’t mention Trump at his campaign kickoff, while Secretary of State Brian Kemp’s official announcement practically oozed Trump-ian themes. More Trump loyalists could join the race, including a top aide to Vice President Mike Pence.

Democrats are practically salivating over the chance to energize left-leaning voters by painting whichever Republican emerges as Trump lite. A pair of Democratic rising stars – state Reps. Stacey Abrams and Stacey Evans – both figure to put their opposition to Trump at the center of their bids.

The maneuvering underscores the volatility of the race to replace a term-limited Gov. Nathan Deal as the growing field starts to solidify a year before the primary. Each candidate well knows that what could help them win the GOP nomination could be devastating in a general election.

“If Donald Trump was running for governor of Georgia, I’m not sure he would come and say good things about himself right now,” said Chip Lake, a veteran GOP strategist. “He’s just as calculating as the rest of these guys, and he’d be hedging his bets.”

"How Trump is already shaking up the Georgia governor’s race" (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution/MyAJC.com)
How Trump is already shaking up the Georgia governor’s race


One thing that the AJC article did not mention are the rumors and talk that should he win the 6th Congressional District Special Election next month, Jon Ossoff likely may be strongly encouraged by the Democrats to enter the 2018 race for Georgia governor.

The Democrats likely may strongly encourage Jon Ossoff to enter the 2018 race for Georgia governor both because of the acute lack of viable candidates on the Democratic side of the gubernatorial field and because of Ossoff's seemingly exceptional fundraising prowess during the ongoing special election in Georgia's 6th Congressional District.

Otherwise, the 2018 race for Georgia governor appears to be shaping up early-on to a Republican-dominated affair that will pit strongly pro-Trump GOP factions against factions that may be less openly supportive of Donald Trump.

[Pemgin]

Ossoff would be 31 in 2018. Governors are almost never that young, except for wunderkinds like Bill Clinton. I like Ossoff, but he doesn't seem like a Bill Clinton. I'm afraid he'd get stomped outside of metro Atlanta, like most statewide Democratic candidates.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by Pemgin

Ossoff would be 31 in 2018. Governors are almost never that young, except for wunderkinds like Bill Clinton. I like Ossoff, but he doesn't seem like a Bill Clinton. I'm afraid he'd get stomped outside of metro Atlanta, like most statewide Democratic candidates.

If he actually wins the 6th Congressional District special election, I don't know that Georgia Democrats really would have any other choice but to go with a candidate like Ossoff.

Like you said, Democrats are most likely going to get stomped outside of metro Atlanta anyway (particularly with their virtually non-existent field of candidates for statewide offices early-on in the 2018 election cycle), so the party and the movement might as well go with a very high-profile candidate who seems to be demonstrating that he can haul in astonishingly massive eye-popping (even unprecedented) piles of cash while generating maximized voter turnout, media attention and excitement that Democrats around these parts have not seen in probably close to two decades.

If they are to have a legitimate chance at winning any statewide race in the foreseeable future, the key to victory for Democrats will be to capitalize on the changing demographics (and widespread public dislike of Donald Trump) in the Atlanta metropolitan area (where roughly about between 55-60% of the state's population lives) and generate maximized voter turnout that outpaces the voter turnout that will be extremely favorable for the GOP throughout the rest of the state.

Ossoff's unprecedented fundraising prowess and his popularity within the progressive movement more than likely would help Democrats be much more competitive in the 2018 election cycle in Georgia than it currently appears that they will be without that type of massive infusion of money and excitement that a figure like Ossoff might bring to what otherwise figures to be a one-sided affair decidedly in favor of the Republicans.