Republicans hope those who voted for President Barack Obama in 2008 will swing to vote for Republican candidate Mitt Romney this time around, but historical data suggest that Athens County may lean to the left in November.
In the 2008 general election, 65 percent of the vote in Athens County went to Obama, while only 31 percent voted for Senator John McCain, according to election results from the office of Secretary of State Jon Husted.
The city of Athens swayed to the left as well, with 72 percent of votes for Obama and 25 percent for McCain.
Though young people throughout the country played a major role in electing Obama in 2008, student turnout in Athens County has been historically low, said David Ratliff, Democratic chair of the Athens County Board of Elections.
“Whether they’re voting in their home states by absentee ballot or don’t want to show up or can’t show up, historically, the entire student body has had a lack of turnout when it comes to voting,” Ratliff said.
The Athens County Republican Party has been making phones calls and campaigning door to door in preparation for the general election in November, said Pete Couladis, chairman of the Athens County Republican Party.
Couladis said there has been interest from Democrats in Athens County who want to vote for Romney in November, although data from past elections show the opposite.
“That’s kind of an indication that the Democratic Party base is not real happy with (Obama’s) positions,” he said. “There’s not much to be happy about.”
Troy, Coolville and Carthage voted Republican in the 2008 general election, but these cities account for only about six percent of the total votes in Athens County. Troy had the highest percentage of Republican votes, with 66 percent of votes for McCain.
These cities have historically swayed Republican, and most of the Republican areas in the county are further away from the city of Athens, Couladis said.
But when the congressional districts were redrawn after the 2010 census, these cities became a part of the sixth district, while the rest of the county lies in the 15th district.
Still, the Democratic turnout for Athens County has always been very high, Ratliff said, adding that he expects it to be the same this November.
“Athens is predominantly a Democratic stronghold, and the county itself sort of stands out in the state as being a Democratic stronghold,” he said. “We have been very instrumental in being successful in putting a Democratic candidate (in office).”
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