This morning, The Washington Post profiled the Georgia senate race and mapped a pretty grim picture for Democratic Senate candidate Jim Barksdale’s campaign. While the story highlighted Johnny Isakson’s commendable reputation for constituent service and broad recognition from voters throughout the state, Barksdale’s outlook wasn’t as rosy – even from Democratic strategists and the candidate himself.
In case you missed it, here are the top 5 takeaways about Jim Barksdale’s candidacy, as described by The Washington Post:
1) “Almost no voters interviewed had heard of Barksdale, a political neophyte who wasn’t Democrats’ top recruit.”
2) "…the low-profile Democrat…”
3) “… I think very few voters are going to go to the polls voting for him,” said Democratic strategist Billy Linville.
4) “Democrats’ lack of preparedness is evidenced in Barksdale, who prior to his last-minute decision to run a largely self-funded campaign was a non-entity in Georgia politics. Even now, Barksdale is not sure he will continue to be active in the party if he loses this race.”
5) “Barksdale got in the race because ‘nobody was stepping up,’ he said in an interview. He acknowledges his close poll numbers are ‘a reflection less of me than of how upset people are’ with the status quo in Washington.”