[EDITOR’S NOTE: This is an excerpt from a longer article that appeared August 7, 2008 on the Democrats’ chances of gaining enough seats to have a 60-seat majority in the next Congress.]
Finally, there is Georgia where Democrats argue that GOP Sen. Saxby Chambliss has not yet planted deep roots. They also contend that having Barack Obama at the top of the ticket will increase turn out among African Americans, who make up roughly 28 percent of the voting age population, which will help their nominee.
The Democratic nominee is former state Rep. Jim Martin, who placed second in a five-way primary on July 15, earning a spot in last Tuesday’s run-off where he faced DeKalb County Executive Vernon Jones. Conventional wisdom gave Jones, who is African American, the advantage in the low turnout run-off, but Martin scored a solid 60-percent victory.
Martin was the Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor in 2006, taking 42 percent of the vote. Democrats believe that the race left Martin with at least the makings of a statewide organization that can be put to
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