Winning A Statewide Election No Easy Task In Georgia

As I traveled from the northern part of our state Saturday into Middle Georgia and then circled back on the return trip, it once again amazed me at how much territory the Peach State covers.

Along the way I also noticed signs for various statewide candidates seeking office in 2018. It’s campaign season again and all offices from governor to agriculture commissioner will be placed before the voters.

In order to be successful campaigning statewide in Georgia, one must be prepared to cover a great deal of territory. From the North Georgia mountains to the coast in Savannah and Jekyll Island and St. Simons, it’s a daunting task to drive our state in one day. Even going from one end of our state to Middle Georgia is no easy task.

Georgia is a diverse state and it’s something that makes it such a great one. We have industry. We have a complex transportation system although I still don’t like driving in downtown Atlanta. We have numerous colleges and technical schools. We have a large agricultural base. We have a very large population.

Politically speaking, Georgia currently leans Republicans but it is not a 80-20 split by any means. While all statewide office holders are currently Republican, recent presidential elections have been relatively close when you go back and look at the numbers.

For decades it was Democrats who held the power in statewide politics. Truthfully, one side holding all the power is really never a good thing.

It would take a pretty major political upset for a Democrat to win a statewide contest in 2018. It is interesting to note that numerous Democratic challengers are lining up to run for Congressional seats across the state against Republican incumbents.

Back to the task of campaigning in Georgia, even though, in theory, it should be easier to campaign in 2018 with items such as social media and YouTube, the best campaigning is still using shoe leather which means meeting voters in person. That means traveling to events whether they are in Rome, Brunswick, Macon, Columbus, Tifton or Moultrie.

Many candidates without big campaign budgets typically try to do more one-on-one campaigning. Stories of candidates putting many miles on their vehicles traveling the state are common.

Of course, it’s always beneficial to have a budget for advertising. The best mediums are television, radio and newspapers. Ads on internet sites are common in 2018 and many candidates still do direct mailers and the dreaded voice calls (if you want my vote do not call me asking for it.)

In coming weeks the statewide candidates will be more visible, whether in person or on television. Many will grow weary of the process but to me there’s something downright American about it. Now if we can just elect one or two candidates who actually follow through on their campaign promises. If so, that candidate would immediately jump to the front of my list.

Monticello native Chris Bridges is a long-time newspaper columnist. He welcomes feedback from readers of The Monticello News at pchrisbridges@gmail.com.