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Date Published: October 31, 2004
GOP expects partisan politics to affect outcome
Dems predict split-ticket voting
By KRISTA PIERCE
Item Staff Writer
kristap@theitem.com
Sumter County Republican Party Chairman Jimmy Byrd is
hopeful that Republican candidates will ride the tide of support for
President George W. Bush into office come Tuesday.
“I think
we’ll see a strong vote for Bush, and we might see a coattail
effect,” he said. “That’s the key. The Bush base is a little more
energized right now. Kerry really doesn’t have that energy. The
people who are voting for Kerry really aren’t voting for Kerry,
they’re voting against Bush. That’s going to have a positive
effect on all our candidates.”
That’s because partisan
politics is expected to play a big role in the outcome of several
local races. Die-hard Republicans like Byrd say the overwhelming
support Bush enjoys in Sumter County is bound to help other
Republican candidates.
But Democrats say most people aren’t
likely to vote strictly along party lines.
“Our history
shows that local people from both political parties often times vote
what we call a ‘split ticket,’” said Charles Griffin, who chairs the
Sumter County Democratic Party. For example, “In the last race for
judge of probate, the Democratic candidate obviously had
overwhelming support from both parties.”
In that race,
Democrat Dale Atkinson received two of every three votes, beating
one-term incumbent John R. Parker with 64.3 percent of the
vote.
Griffin points out that bipartisan support also exists
for Republican candidates, citing the last sheriff’s election in
2000 as proof: Incumbent Tommy Mims, a Republican, received
overwhelming support from voters in both parties in his defeat of
Democratic challenger Charles Hearn.
“Sumter County just has
a lot of people who, to use that old cliché, still vote for the man
and not the party,” Griffin said. “I certainly acknowledge the
presidential race will encourage some people to vote a
straight-party ticket, but that’s not a major concern.”
The
issue of partisan politics came to a fever pitch during the June
primary, when five Republican candidates vied for the party’s
nomination to run for the office of sheriff, pulling in some voters
who would have normally voted in the Democratic primary. When
incumbent Sumter County Auditor Jomarie Crocker was overwhelmingly
defeated by political newcomer and fellow Democrat Lauretha McCants,
many voters cried foul, saying those who would have cast a ballot
for Crocker didn’t get that chance because they were voting in the
Republican primary. Some voters called for change, saying
individuals should be allowed to vote in both the Democratic and the
Republican primaries.
Byrd discounts that sentiment.
“I think you would have had the same outcome either way,”
Byrd said. “I think 95 percent of the people who voted in the
Republican primary were Republican.”
The system, Byrd said,
has its faults, but it works.
“I understand the
frustration,” he said. “But that’s our process and right now, it’s
the best system we have. In today’s politics, you could corrupt the
system with a crossover primary ... Both parties would end up with
the weakest candidate because both parties would try to sabotage the
other’s nomination process.”
Lottie Spencer said she still
“votes for the man.”
A Sumter resident who volunteers her
time with the Rembert Area Community Coalition, Spencer said a
candidate’s party affiliation will have little to do with her
decisions in the voting booth.
“The record speaks for
itself,” she said. “Even though you might like this person, ... (the
record) might show they don’t do anything for you. You should vote
for the person you know is going to help you.”
Juanita
Britton, who is chairwoman of the Rembert coalition, said she has
contacted several elected officials about problems in her community.
All too often, she said, her comments went unheeded.
“I want
a candidate to acknowledge me,” she said. “If I think enough of them
to vote, then they should at least think enough of me to acknowledge
my problems.”
Neither woman expects partisan politics to play
a large role in the outcome of local races, but Charlie Tyer, a
professor at the University of South Carolina’s department of
political science, isn’t so sure.
“Partisanship has indeed
increased in recent elections and shows no sign of abating, “ he
said. “It is reason for concern given the fact that those in
political office tend to often be more extreme in their political
views than the general public, therefore not reflecting the mood of
the electorate in many ways.”
Tyer said this causes more
divisiveness in the legislature and can cause the public to grow
disenchanted with governing bodies.
“They wonder why these
people just can’t get along and cooperate,” he said. “It’s a problem
that is not likely to get much better.”
Tyer said South
Carolina has been moving to a Republican state for some time and “is
just about there.”
With legendary U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond’s
switch to the Republican party, many South Carolina voters, who have
traditionally been conservative, left the Democratic party and
aligned themselves with Republican candidates. Race, Tyer said,
often comes into play.
“With recent districting by the
Republican-controlled Legislature, (it is) unlikely the state will
allow Democrats to come back in the Legislature,” Tyer said.
“Statewide offices are a different story, but only if the Democrats
can carry a high percentage of black voters and get about one-third
of white voters.”
Still, Griffin said he’s optimistic that
Democratic candidates in Sumter County will do well.
“Looking at the past, we’ve gotten people from both parties
in elections for countywide offices, and that’s a true indication of
the independence of some voters in South Carolina.”
Griffin
said voter turnout will be key, and Byrd said he’s also looking
forward to voters coming out in large numbers.
“Good voter
turnout has a positive effect on all candidates,” Byrd said. “We’ve
got the strongest slate of Republican candidates I’ve seen in the
past 12 to 15 years. I expect we’ll see some crossover on both
sides.”
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November 5, 2004 
