As State Dems Look To Future, Straw Poll Puts Dubose Porter In Lead
A straw poll for state Democratic Party chair puts former House Minority Leader Dubose Power of Dublin, GA in the lead, with Doug Stoner, the former state senator from Cobb County, a distant second.
The poll comes as state Democrats look to rebuild following years of internal issues.
Of the 100 or so votes cast, Porter received 53 percent. Stoner drew 22 percent. Rockdale County Tax Commissioner R.J Hadley and former State Senator Mary Squires both came in at about 11 percent.
The Young Democrats of Georgia conducted the poll at the end of a candidate forum Sunday.
*To watch the entire candidate forum, click here.
Kathy Ashe, a longtime state rep. who retired in 2012, moderated the forum and said fundraising and organizational skills are clearly on the party’s mind.
“If you do that with Twitter, Linkedin or whatever you do it with these days, you’ve still got to start at the local level where people know each other,” said Ashe.
She said unifying Georgia’s Democrats must be a top priority.
“Knowing people all over the state – the urban and rural – bringing them together.”
In June, party chair Mike Berlon stepped down amid ethics issues related to his private law practice.
Ashe said the party’s next leader must do a better job nurturing strong Democratic voices.
“For years this party has depended on having a governor to be the spokesman of the party and we’ve found it difficult to figure out how to empower each other to speak when it’s important and I think that’s a skill that this next chair is going to need to have.”
The election takes place August 31st at the Coweta County Fairgrounds & Conference Center. Three hundred or so members of the state executive committee will vote.
*To watch the entire candidate forum, click here.
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