Obama Returns to Campaign Trail to Rally Black Voters

[riversedge]

Source: nytimes



Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns Oct 18, 2017
9-11 minutes
Lt. Gov Ralph S. Northam, left, the Democratic nominee for governor in Virginia, during a debate with his Republican challenger, Ed Gillespie, in Wise, Va., last week. Steve Helber/Associated Press




DUMFRIES, Va. — President Barack Obama will hit the campaign trail on Thursday to rally black voters behind candidates for governor in Virginia and New Jersey amid stern warnings that African Americans may not come out in force on an Election Day that is just three weeks away.

Mr. Obama’s appearances on behalf of Virginia’s lieutenant governor, Ralph S. Northam, in Richmond and the financier Philip D. Murphy in Newark — two white candidates in predominantly black cities — come as Democrats struggle to inspire African-Americans to vote this year. While Mr. Murphy appears comfortably in the lead in New Jersey, the race in Virginia is close.

And in Alabama, where voters go to the polls on Dec. 12, Doug Jones, a former prosecutor, is running a surprisingly competitive race for the Senate against the firebrand social conservative Roy S. Moore.
....................................

The party’s dilemma echoes a challenge that Democrats have faced in elections since Mr. Obama’s rise to the presidency: how to persuade some of the most loyal voters to show up for elections when the Democrat they most love is not a candidate. In 2017, antipathy for President Trump could be a new motivation, but Mr. Trump is not on the ballot either.

Phillip E. Thompson, the president of the N.A.A.C.P. in Virginia’s Loudoun County, said he was worried that black voters were simply not engaged...................................

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Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/18/us/politics/obama-campaign-trail-virginia-new-jersey-alabama.html

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I will try to find some current pics.


Obama rally with Northam set for Thursday night at Greater Richmond Convention Center
http://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/government-politics/obama-rally-with-northam-set-for-thursday-night-at-greater/article_50bace92-9e97-50b8-b520-f81026a1d510.html




By ANDREW CAIN Richmond Times-Dispatch 20 hrs ago



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Former President Barack Obama’s rally on Thursday evening with Ralph Northam, the Democratic nominee for governor, is set for the Richmond Convention Center.

The campaign said Thursday’s rally will be free and open to the public.

Northam’s campaign announced Tuesday night that a limited number of tickets to the rally will be made available to the general public at 10 a.m. Wednesday. They will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis at the Richmond Coliseum Ticket Office at the 5th Street entrance, 601 E. Leigh St.

Earlier Tuesday tickets were made available on a first-come, first-served basis to those who had pre-registered for the event at Northam’s campaign website.

Those who pre-registered were told to line up at the Coliseum on Tuesday for a chance to claim a ticket to the rally, leading to a long line that snaked around the arena................................................................................

[yallerdawg]

1. Don't forget Alabama before December 12th!

Wouldn't that be something?

Headline: "Former president brings home surprise Democratic senate victory, while acting president flounders again!"

[eppur_se_muova]

2. I'm afraid that might fire up the redhats more than the Dems.

If he doesn't come here, I will understand, and applaud his decision.

[yallerdawg]

6. This is starting to ring true (from article).

The Alabama contest is even more delicate for Democrats, because of the state’s intensely polarized racial politics. But Democrats believe Mr. Jones has a slim path to victory.

To win, Mr. Jones must maximize turnout among the quarter of voters who are black, while capturing about a third of the overwhelmingly white Republican population. Democrats have little infrastructure left in the state. Old-guard black groups have withered, and Republicans have won every statewide office for a decade.

Mr. Jones has put his legal pursuit of the Klan at the center of his message and has reached out to leaders of the Congressional Black Caucus, including Mr. Richmond. Representative Hakeem Jeffries, Democrat of New York and a member of the House leadership team, said he met with Mr. Jones and was watching the race closely.

To turn out black voters in 2018, Mr. Jeffries said, Democrats would have to go beyond “doing drive-bys in African-American churches.”

[riversedge]

3. PHOTOS: Long lines for tickets to see Obama

Times-Dispatch‏Verified account @RTDNEWS 6h6 hours ago

PHOTOS: Long lines for tickets to see Obama

Link to tweet

[Honeycombe8]

4. I hope he encourages everyone to make sure they're ready with photo I.D. or whatever is necessary...

to vote. The states are going after people without driver's licenses. It can take some time & a little money to get it, if you don't have it already. A certified copy of your birth certificate, to start.

Urban and poor people are more often affected. Also,women....because of their name changes.

[nitpicker]

12. Virginia has a photo ID requirement

BUT the polling places accept a lot of other photo IDs (Virginia ID cards, military/government ID, photo ID from Virginia schools, etc.) If I recall correctly, the county offices even have the ability to provide IDs for the purpose of voting. And if people left their ID at home, or have no photo ID, they can vote a provisional ballot, run down to the county office and get a photo ID, then submit it (or a copy) so their provisional ballot counts.

It's just that newer Virginia drivers' licences now have a barcode that can be scanned to find the voter in the database, thus eliminating the need to manually find the voter.

[Honeycombe8]

13. Yes....whatever is necessary for each area. It's not standardized.

Where I am in La. requires photo ID, as did a new law in Dallas TX. Only certain kinds of photo ID were allowed, though, AND the kicker was that the NAME on the ID had to match SOCIAL SECURITY NAME (women with marriage name changes were at high risk of not being able to vote).

Dallas would not accept student photo IDs, I think. Not sure about La. (just moved here). But they accept hunting licenses (think of anything that conservatives would have - that would be accepted; things that liberals might have - those would likely not be accepted).

[riversedge]

5. I just realized it is only Wednesday night. No wonder I can not find any pics or tweets

about the rally. Silly me.

[Proud liberal 80]

7. I dont know

He and Bill Clinton were great at getting people to turn out for them, but it has had never translated to other Dem candidates.

[StepnKretchit]

8. To Rally Black Voters?

It seems to me that President Obama rallied enough voters to get elected not once, but twice. President Obama is respected worldwide. So I really doubt it is strictly "Black voters" President Obama is looking to rally.

Another case of hidden racism. President Trump has a "base". President Obama has "Black voters".

[yallerdawg]

10. Yes, rally black voters also known as "Democrats"!

Let's see. In the last couple years:

I saw Barack Obama at Selma 50th Anniversary Bridge Crossing.

I saw Bill Clinton at HBCU Alabama State University.

I saw Hillary Clinton at Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church where Dr. King helped to organize the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

In Alabama, if you want to win you better rally the "Democrats!"

And then your chances are still slim to...
.

[sheshe2]

9. That is my President until further notice.

[Sunlei]

11. I wish he would pass out tickets and work the areas where people don't vote or engage with campaign

websites.