Democrats may vote by race in South Carolina
CAMPAIGN '08
In a state where most whites are Republican, the rest don't seem to mind Obama, but they tend to favor Clinton and Edwards.
LANCASTER, S.C. — Shelby King is a fan of Barack Obama. She admires his charisma and passion and believes he could unite the country as president. On Saturday, however, King plans to vote for Hillary Rodham Clinton in South Carolina's Democratic primary.
"She's got the experience," said King, 61, a real estate agent in Columbia, the state capital. "She's tough. She's bright. I'm a female of her era, and I know how hard it's been to get to where she's gotten."
Edward Pair also likes Obama. But he plans to vote for John Edwards, who seems to have better ideas on how to fix the country. "It's not just rhetoric," said Pair, 57, a rural letter carrier. "Edwards has real good answers."
South Carolina, host of the Democrats' first Southern primary, is also the first contested state with a substantial black population. As many as half or more of those who turn out to vote Saturday may be African American, making Obama the favorite to win and boosting his efforts to become the nation's first black president.
But that still leaves a substantial number of white voters -- King and Pair among them -- and their choices could mean the difference between a big Obama victory and something different. "Therein lies the key to what the margins are going to be," said Carey Crantford, a veteran surveyor of South Carolina opinion.
Illinois Sen. Obama has plenty of white backers in the state, including former Gov. Jim Hodges and South Carolina's two most recent Democratic chairmen. New York Sen. Clinton, whose husband is admired by many in the black community, has made inroads among African Americans here as elsewhere.
A racial divide
But a familiar pattern has emerged. It may not be driven by the racial animus that caused so many whites to flee the Democratic Party over the last few decades -- 96% of those casting ballots in last Saturday's GOP primary in South Carolina were white. Still, polls have found a substantial divide between white and black in South Carolina, with Obama the favorite of African Americans, and Clinton and Edwards leading among whites.
King and Pair reflect two pillars of the Democratic Party in this heavily Republican state. One is women, especially the affluent and well-educated who live in cities. The other is hard-pressed rural voters who have stayed true to the party for the reason that Pair offered. "I'm a Democrat," he said, "because I'm not rich."
