In Tennessee, Clarksville Team Obama Focusing on Voter Drive

A group of Obama supporters from the Clarksville, Tennessee, area -- Clarksville Team Obama -- had its first official meeting on Thursday, March 27 at the New York Pizza Depot. At the meeting, Obama supporters discussed a plan of action for the upcoming primary in Kentucky. The state of Kentucky border is the north city limit of Clarksville, so many attendees stressed the need to begin campaigning for Obama as soon as possible in local Kentucky border cities, with an emphasis on the town of Hopkinsville, Kentucky.

Immediate plans for the upcoming Kentucky primary included a voter registration drive and introducing Obama to the local population. Plans also included finding a space that the group could utilize in Hopkinsville and studying how to have a voter registration drive that was non-partisan. The organizers of the meeting stressed the need for volunteers for various committees and fund-raising for both the local and national Obama campaign.

Attendees also discussed the lack of activity politically from the Democratic Party as far as the presidential campaign is concerned. One group leader stated that since the race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama is far from decided, many local Democratic leaders and elected officials have decided not to become involved in any campaign until the race is decided. Although both Kentucky and Tennessee may be seen as red states, many attendees wanted to focus on getting the word out about Obama's campaign message to people who traditionally may not be seen as Obama supporters.

During the meeting, members discussed why they initially decided to get involved with the Obama campaign. Although a couple of the attendees could be considered political activists, for most of the attendees, this was their first time being involved in a presidential political campaign. Most of the attendees stated that they became involved because they reacted positively to Obama's message of racial reconciliation, and plans involving the economy in health care.

Clarksville, Tennessee, has the distinction of being the 10th fastest growing area in the United States, with a large influx of people coming from many different regions. Due to its proximity to Fort Campbell, the third largest Army base in the country, it also has a large population of current and ex-military personnel. Because of its dynamically changing population, many attendees wanted to work on voter registration as a means to gaining additional votes for Obama.

According to the census, only 55 percent of the voting population in Tennessee cast ballots in the 2004 election, which is lower than the national rate of 64 percent. By concentrating on voter registration, and with the current political winds leaning towards Democrats, it was determined that the more voters that were registered, the better a chance those registered would be interested in voting for Obama.

US Census Bureau, "Tennessee in Focus: Census Bureau Pre-Primary Snapshot"
"Planned Growth Can Payoff For the City", Clarksville Leaf Chronicle