Wednesday, May 5, 2004

Where have all the Democrats gone? By J. FRANK LYNCH jflynch@TheCitizenNews.com C.J. Mowell expressed disbelief, and just a little bit of disappointment as well, when he learned there would be no Democratic opposition to any of the 17 local offices in Fayette County up for grabs this election year. The longtime county coroner stopped by The Citizen offices Friday afternoon just to confirm that what he had heard was true: Not one Democrat qualified to run against any of the 16 Republican incumbents up for re-election. “I just can’t believe it,” declared Mowell, who in 34 years as coroner has held public office in Fayette longer than anybody else. He mentioned Democrat party stalwarts Frances Reeves and Joan Neal, noting they’d “always make sure at least one Democrat made the ballot.” Mowell is a holdover from an era when most all Fayette’s elected officials were aligned with the Democrats. But as the tide of national politics shifted and Fayette’s population grew more conservative, every Democrat in office eventually switched sides. Failing to do so would have meant political demise in a county that elected George W. Bush president in 2000 with more than 80 percent of the vote. Former Clerk of Court Bud Ballard, defeated in 2000, was the last. Fayette has more than 52,000 registered voters, according to Secretary of State Cathy Cox. Republican incumbents filed to run again in 16 of the 17 local offices at party headquarters in Fayetteville over two days, Monday and Tuesday. Only three officeholders face opposition in the party primary in July. There will be no contested county races on the November ballot. Not one Democratic showed up at the Peachtree City offices of attorney Judy Chidester, Democratic Party chairwoman. That’s where Democrats were told to register, but a woman who answered the phone at Chidester’s number Friday afternoon said no one had come in to qualify all week. Chidester was out of town at a conference and unavailable to comment, the receptionist said. Still, local Democrats know there are others like them out there. Nearly 9,000 votes were cast in Fayette on March 2 in the Democratic Presidential Preference Primary, though there’s no way to determine how many Republicans “crossed over” to vote in that non-binding referendum. Last fall, more than 100 turned out for the annual Jefferson-Jackson Day dinner and fund-raiser hosted by the Fayette Democrats. Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor was the guest speaker, and the enthusiastic turnout led him to declare that “a new era was dawning in Fayette politics.” Ernest Broadwell, a Peachtree City resident and chairman of the 8th Congressional District for the Democrats, said defining the Democratic party in Fayette County is far more complicated than even he realized. Broadwell was a longtime Pan Am employee and union loyalist who moved from New York City 12 years ago when Delta rescued that struggling airline. He’s been fighting to re-establish a Democratic presence in Fayette County ever since. “The problem is we don’t have a clear-cut idea of who our Democrats out there are,” said Broadwell, suggesting that some residents loyal to the Left may say the opposite not to offend their conservative neighbors. And though Fayette’s black population continues to grow steadily, Broadwell said any gains in loyalty to the Democratic Party among African-American newcomers is offset by an equal or greater number who align themselves more conservatively.