Georgia, Alabama voters gear up for Super Tuesday

With Georgia and Alabama presidential primaries just one day away, many Republicans and Democrats in the Chattahoochee Valley are divided over who should be the presidential nominees for their respective parties.

On the Republican side, there are five candidates left in the race, and each has a group of supporters pushing for a win on Super Tuesday, the single biggest day for presidential candidates to receive delegates due to voting in 11 states -- including Georgia and Alabama -- and one U.S. territory. The Republican candidates still in the race are businessman Donald Trump, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson.

Democrats will choose between two candidates -- former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Rick Allen, chairman of the Muscogee County Republican Party, said local Republicans have been more divided this political season because they have more choices.

"There's a little confusion because Donald Trump is not a conventional Republican and he's in our race and there's good support for him," Allen said. "There's also good support for Ted Cruz. There's also good support for Marco Rubio. So it mirrors the South Carolina results a little bit, I guess. But we don't know how it's going to be different here."

He said the local party did a straw poll at a recent precinct meeting with about 60 people, and Ted Cruz won by about 50 percent of the vote.

"But I don't believe that's indicative of the general population of the Repub

licans here in town," he said. "I think it was just a kind of anomaly that a lot of people in the Republican Party saw him when he was here in August, it may be a carry over from that."

Cruz came to Columbus on Aug. 8 and spoke at Solid Rock Assembly of God, where he drew about 400 people.

Though prohibited from endorsing a particular candidate in his role as chairman of the local Republican Party, Allen said he is personally supporting Cruz in the primary, but he will vote for any Republican candidate that becomes the nominee.

"He is a constitutional conservative and I look at his proven track record," he said of Cruz. "I think Washington is crooked, and it's corrupt, and he's the only one that's talking about a Washington cartel, almost like a mafia type thing.

"He fights inside Washington to expose all the corruption and then he's accused by the other candidates of being nasty and a liar, and nobody likes him," he added. "Nobody likes somebody who comes into a group of corrupt people and tries to expose them."

However, many local Republicans are supporting other candidates. Brad Wheeler, owner of Diversified Printing Services Inc., described himself as "a conservative Tea Party person" staunchly opposed to Obamacare. He said he is supporting Trump because establishment Republicans in Congress lost their effectiveness, and it will take an outsider to fix the problem.

"Small business people, we just want representation," he said. "We don't want politicians doing nothing and getting a big fat paycheck, as our taxes continue to go up, up and up. We see wasteful spending; we see foolish ideas.

"So we really didn't have anybody representing us," he continued. "Well, here comes Donald Trump. And he has this real populous kind of message that I can't remember seeing in the Republican Party, ever."

Wheeler said he's part of a local group led by another local resident, retired Col. Cecil Calhoun. After being contacted by the Ledger-Enquirer, Calhoun left a voicemail referring all questions to the Trump campaign.

Amanda Gonzalez, 29, moved to Columbus from Peachtree City, Ga., six months ago after her husband was hired by a local company. She first registered to vote as an Independent at age 18, had switched to the Democratic Party by the 2008 presidential election, and is now a Republican. She said she prayed for God to show her who to support, and he placed Carson on her heart.

"I personally like that he's a man of faith," she said. "I think it's important that he has a set of values and that he sticks to them. I think we often see in politics that some individuals say they have a set of values but based on situations they're in, those set of values change. And I think that it's important for me that I can trust -- even if I don't agree with all of his values -- that he will stay true to them."

Gonzalez is the volunteer Muscogee County leader and area coordinator for the Carson campaign, mobilizing supporters in about eight counties. She said she has a contact list of about 300 individuals who are supporters and have either actively donated to the campaign, volunteered or participated in a book-signing.

On Thursday, Gonzalez hosted a Republican Debate Watch Party at the Sports Page on Veterans Parkway, where some local Republicans gathered to watch the last debate before the primary. She said it attracted mostly Carson and Cruz supporters.

On Feb. 22, Rubio supporters also had a local event. The meet-and-greet was hosted by U.S. Reps. Lynn Westmoreland and Austin Scott, who talked about Cruz at the Cannon Brew Pub on Broadway. Westmoreland, who represents north Columbus in the 3rd Congressional District, endorsed Rubio earlier this month and has been traveling throughout his district campaigning on the senator's behalf.

"Over the last 7 years, the Obama Administration has crippled our presence abroad. We are no longer seen as the world leader to promote democracy, peace, and freedom for all," Westmoreland posted Feb. 4 on his Facebook page. "What America needs now more than ever is leadership, and I believe Marco Rubio is the man for the job."

Jed Harris, a local businessman and former state representative during the early 1990s, said he's for Kasich, the Ohio governor.

"I'm very familiar with his track record of public service," he said. "I've followed him his entire career, and I believe that where things are now with our country, we need his experience. ... Additionally, he has a history of being able to work across the aisle and now, more than ever, we need someone who could do that."

Harris said he's concerned about Trump possibly becoming the party's nominee. "I respect him for his business acumen, but those sets of skills don't necessarily transfer to public service," he said. "That's like saying someone is a good athlete. Yeah, that's fine, but they may not be a good musician, it's sort of apples to oranges. I believe the eventual Republican winning ticket will involve Kasich and Rubio, and I'm not sure which will be the presidential, and which will be the vice presidential. I believe that will be the wining ticket right there."

Democrat supporters

Among Democrats, some local political activists are just as passionate about their candidates.

David Smith, an 18-year-old Columbus High School senior, is president of Columbus for Bernie Sanders. He said the group consists of grassroots individuals who have been working for months to try to drum up local support.

"I love Hillary Clinton. She's a wonderful woman, I think she'll make an excellent commander-in-chief, and if she does turn out to be the nominee, I will vote for her happily," Smith said. "However, I just feel that Bernie Sanders is the best candidate to, not only beat the Republicans in November, but to bring about the best change for this country. We need somebody who is passionate, somebody who can fight for the working class and has the proven record of doing so. And Bernie Sanders has for years been fighting for communities of color, for young people, for people who don't have a voice."

Patricia Lassiter, another local Democratic activist, is a strong Clinton supporter. She said there are really three different campaigns going on when it comes to the presidential election -- the TV campaign, the Facebook campaign and the on-the-ground campaign.

"People that are watching a whole lot of television pundits are feeling very entertained by Trump and probably by Sanders," she said. "Those are the people that feel entertained, I guess, by people that are yelling at them. People that believe in issues aren't seeing a lot on the Republican side, except for a lot of red meat. ... And they're noticing more that Hillary has her game together."

Saundra Ellison, chairwoman of the Muscogee County Democratic Party, said local Democrats are excited about the election, but she believes most are anxious for Super Tuesday to pass so they could get ready for the General Election in November.

"They're going to vote Tuesday, and a lot of them have already voted, including myself," she said. "The word to me is, you know, we're working, we're concerned about who's going to be the next president, and we want to get the right people in place."

Ellison said she wouldn't divulge who she voted for because of her position as the local party chairwoman.

Different views

At the Winn-Dixie parking lot on Veterans Parkway, shoppers were backing a variety of candidates.

Gloria Owens, 65, of Smith Station, Ala., said too many people are unemployed and she's concerned about the economy.

"I think the one that can fix the country right now is Donald Trump," she said. "I think he can because he's a good businessman, a proven businessman throughout his whole life."

She said the foul language that Trump uses is like many American Christians these days, so she doesn't see the controversy.

"We all use the F-word, we all drop that bomb, we all do, and we go to church and sing praises," she said. "We all sin and fall short of the glory of God, but we want our country safe right now, and that's most important to me."

Tammy Jordan, 55, a black Columbus resident, said she has been turned off by statements that Trump has made about people of different races and ethnic backgrounds.

"Please, Lord, don't let Trump get in there, please," she said. "The only reason he's there is because he has the money. I haven't heard him talk about anything about what needs to be fixed or anything. ... It's more personal digs at people. I didn't like him even when he wasn't running."

Jordan said she is voting for Clinton because she likes her policies.

"I like the fact that we're going to have a woman now," she said. "And me, as a woman, I think we're more patient. We think things through, and I'm hoping that she has the ability to do that."

Charley Overby, a 63-year-old Columbus resident, said he's voting for Cruz because he reflects his values.

"I'm hoping that we look out for the working person, the taxpayer, and someone with Christian views," he said. "He's the only one I can vote for right now. He's not my perfect pick, but he's the closest one that fits that."

Others were just disgusted by the whole process. Peggy Jenkins, 65, a resident of Texas, was in town visiting her sister, Vicky Pope, 66.

"I think it stinks this year. If we knew what they all were running for, it would be different," she said. "But it's all fussing, fussing, fussing. It's scary. It's like they're really going to put somebody up there that's going to carry on like this all the time? We need some peace."

Whitney Henderson, 34, who is bi-racial, said she is concerned about Trump's mantra to make America great again. She believes he and his supporters want to revert back to a time that was unpleasant for people based on race, gender and other differences.

"He wants to take us back and some of us want to move forward," she said.

Alva James-Johnson, 706-571-8521. Reach her on Facebook at AlvaJamesJohnsonLedger.

This story was originally published February 28, 2016 at 10:00 PM with the headline "Georgia, Alabama voters gear up for Super Tuesday ."