A new poll by John Zogby is showing a sharp and dramatic uptick in support for John Edwards in South Carolina.
Pollster John Zogby: "The Democratic race in South Carolina is reminding me now of the beginning of the old Buffalo Springfield song: "There’s something happening here/What it is ain’t exactly clear."
The combative South Carolina debate and the post debate skirmishes seem to have dramatically shifted the mood of South Carolina's electorate. Edwards appears to be the clear beneficiary.
So you want to help but don't know how well please phone bank for John Edwards in South Carolina.
"Edwards, meanwhile, has had his second good day since the Monday night CNN debate, in which he delivered a strong performance. He hit 19% support on Tuesday alone and then 27% support on Wednesday alone. And, on Wednesday alone, he pulled ahead of Clinton overall. He has pulled ahead among whites. Could he pull ahead of Clinton and finish in second place? Even with a strong showing here, where does he go next to take advantage of the momentum?
There may be one or many reasons for this rapid shift but maybe just maybe it may be Edwards own message in his own words
"If we want to stop saying goodbye to South Carolina's manufacturing jobs, we need to start with a real stimulus package that creates new jobs and puts money in the hands of working families," Edwards said. "President Bush's proposal is swiss-cheese stimulus that leaves out millions of hardworking Americans while toeing the line of right-wing ideology at the expense of smart planning for America's future."
Facing oil that has topped $100 a barrel, the burden of an unemployment rate that rose 0.7 points to 6.6% for December, the largest one month gain in 17 years, and following the loss of 90,000 manufacturing jobs under the Bush presidency, South Carolinians are ready for president who will fight for them. Edwards proposed a short-term economic stimulus plan in December, leading both his opponents and the White House with a smart plan to put money in the hands of people who need it the most and who will use it within their local economies.
The Edwards plan would:
* Provide about $1.5 billion to South Carolina
* Expand benefits for about 9000 long-term unemployed workers
* Provide fiscal relief for the state of South Carolina – which is facing a $430 million deficit next year, according to the state Board of Economic Advisors.
This is a fairly large and rapid movement of the electorate. Support for mainly Clinton seems to be very soft, Obama's support seems to be harder however and gaining in some areas.
Obama, meanwhile, made gains among male voters, attracting 50% support, up from 42% the day before. Clinton held steady at 19% of male support, while Edwards leapt ahead of her, attracting 23% of male support, up from just 15% the day before. Obama continued to outdo Clinton among women, with 36% backing him to Clinton’s 29%.
Overall, here's how the picture looks in South Carolina
The telephone tracking poll taken Jan. 21-23 shows Obama with 39% support from likely Democratic voters, compared to Clinton’s 24% support. The three-day daily tracking survey included 811 likely Democratic primary voters across South Carolina and carries a margin of error of +/-3.4 percentage points. In yesterday's tracking poll, Obama had 43% support to Clinton’s 25%. Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards still trails, but has gained four points and now has support from 19% of likely voters.
Edwards biggest weakness is among black voters which constitute a near majority of the Democratic electorate. However, he has gone from neglible to 5%.
Obama still has a healthy lead among African American voters, but lost almost nine points since yesterday, dropping from 65% to 56% support among that group. Edwards, who registered no support from black voters the day before, picked up five points and Clinton added about two points to reach 18% of black support. Nearly one in five - 19% - of black voters said they were not sure for whom they would vote, which was up a point from the day before.
Obama's lead looks to be unassailable but a 9 point drop among black voters is troubling for Obama. Obama does need to strengthen the economic planks of his policy goals. It could be that South Carolina voters are focusing more intently on thier own economic interests and this is trumping social, gender or racial issues that had been dominating the campaign.
"Overall, Obama maintains the advantage, but change appears to be in the air here – there are a lot of undecideds for this late stage in the contest - and we are watching developments closely."
As an Edwards supporter, I am both pleased and excited by these developments. I do believe that Edwards would make the best President for the turbulent times that are ahead of us. But I will be more than happy voting for any of the three candidates this November. I am not troubled by the current infighting, I am angry about it! I wish people would get their freaking act together and knock it the freak off both on these blogs and in the campaign.
Edwards clearly has many dedicated and fervent supporters, myself included. Edwards has been on the forefront on the issue of poverty in America. The current mortgage crisis has it's roots in the predatory lending practices and naked greed in many of the nation's poorest communities. The plight of the poor is our plight, homeless veterans sleeping under bridges after doing all that was asked of them, even risking their lives is our shame. I ask you again to help this campaign.
Please phone bank for John Edwards in South Carolina.
Your 10 or 20 calls added to just 1% of daily kos readers can impact thousands of voters. John Edwards has stood up for you. Let's give his campaign all we can in these last three days. We must give it all we have no matter the odds.