Rep. Artur Davis must have believed he’d win the Democratic primary for Alabama governor in a walk, and all he needed to worry about was looking conservative enough to compete in the general election.
Davis gave up a safe Democratic House seat to try to become the first African-American governor elected in Alabama.
Originally the favorite for the Democratic nomination, Davis had hoped to capture some of the momentum that President Obama had built among African-American voters and also hoped to display some of Obama’s crossover appeal. Neither materialized for Davis, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee.
With 96 percent of the precincts reporting, Sparks had 62 percent of the vote to Davis’ 38 percent.
Here’s the thing. Davis tried to capture the momentum that President Obama built among African-Americans by voting against Obama’s signature issue, the health care bill. So, should he be surprised that black turnout was low? Davis tried to follow a DLC formula of taking pro-corporate positions on the issues while relying on his identity to motivate black voters. I think that is an anachronistic formula for winning as a Democrat in the South, but, in any case, it was a general election strategy that was ill-suited for winning a Democratic primary.
Meanwhile, in Alabama’s Fifth District, the Republicans rejected Rep. Parker Griffith who was elected in 2008 as a Democrat but switched parties in response to the protracted health care debate.
Congress lost another party-switcher Tuesday when Republican Rep. Parker Griffith was defeated in his primary in Alabama’s 5th district.
Madison County Commissioner Mo Brooks won the three-way contest without the need for a runoff by taking 51 percent of the vote. Griffith won 33 percent, and conceded before the final precincts were tallied. Veteran Les Phillip had 16 percent.
This was in spite of Minority Leader John Boehner showing up down there to do a fundraiser for Griffith. The Establishment took a beating down south last night. This was he case even in the Democratic primary. The Establishment offered Taze Shepherd, the grandson of Sen. John Sparkman. Sparkman served in Congress for 32 years. He was Adlai Stevenson’s running mate in 1952 and a somewhat reluctant signer of the Southern Manifesto. He opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, although it seems that was more out of political necessity than personal conviction. Still, he was a Jim Crow senator, and that’s a stain that can’t be washed off. His grandson did not run to the left.
Shepard called himself the “most centrist candidate” and the only Democrat who has held public office.
“I’ll have the best chance of beating whoever comes out of the Republican primary,” he said. “I’m a centrist like Bud Cramer (who retired from Congress in 2008), and he appealed to Democrats, independents and Republicans.”
Shepard had his head handed to him by Steve Raby.
Raby expressed how grateful he was for the support he received and for the people in all seven counties in the fifth district who worked hard on his campaign. Raby says he was pleasantly surprised by the outcome on Tuesday.
“We were very hopeful and confident that we could win without a runoff,” says Raby. “That means 50 percent, plus one vote. To get over 60 percent of the vote is really humbling.”
Here’s how Howie Klein describes Raby:
Steve Raby is a former employee of the Federal Reserve who spent 9 years in Washington as Chief of Staff to conservative-Democratic Alabama Senator Howell Heflin. Since leaving Washington, Raby has run a lobbying and consulting firm here in North Alabama and has been the consummate gatekeeper. Raby is a self-described conservative, recently stating in an interview, “Can you be a conservative and be a Democrat? Well, I am. Heck, I own more guns than anyone in this race.” Raby has dubious connections as well, having tens of thousands of dollars in contributions to Republican candidates and other electeds who now sit in federal prison.
We all know that in Alabama whoever owns the most guns in the race is going to be the winner of the race, so it’s good to see that confirmed. Raby is hardly anti-Establishment, but he wasn’t the first choice. This seat isn’t going to provide many critical votes for the Democrats even if they win it, but a vote for Pelosi is a vote against Boehner, and that could be worth a lot.
Out in New Mexico, Pete Domenici Jr., the son of a long-serving Republican senator, was crushed in the gubernatorial primary, receiving a mere seven percent of the vote.
Last night was just further proof that legacies have no pull and the parties have less influence than ever over the electorate.
