Black Turnout Could Decide House Races

Ernest Jones watches Democratic House hopeful Larry Kissell greet Clarence McCaulley at a church in Kannapolis, N.C. (By Jim R. Bounds For The Washington Post)

The battle for control of the wealthiest district in the wealthiest state in the country is being fought in the gritty streets of Bridgeport, where most of the district's African Americans live.

"Bridgeport is key to this whole election," said Gary L. Rose, who chairs the department of political science at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn. "It's kind of wild what's going on here. We're dealing with the very impoverished part of the district, and that's where the energy seems to be."

The importance of the black vote is so great, even though it represents just 11 percent of the district, that Shays is running ads directly aimed at Bridgeport that feature African American residents testifying about his effectiveness in Congress. Another Shays ad includes an image of Obama, in the most direct attempt by a House Republican to tie himself to the top of the Democratic ticket.

Himes based his campaign headquarters in Bridgeport and has sent mailings tailored to African American voters. He has met with minority organizations and, like Kissell and others, has made the rounds of black churches.

Kissell is hoping to claim the 8th District of North Carolina, which spans 10 counties along the southern part of the state, stretching from Charlotte, the state's largest city, east to Fayetteville, home of Fort Bragg. Between are clusters of suburbs and a rural chunk of cotton fields, pig and chicken processing plants, and dying mill towns.

Kissell is challenging Republican incumbent Robin Hayes, who has represented the district for 10 years. In 2006, with little name recognition, a meager bankroll and virtually no support from the national party, Kissell came within 329 votes of toppling the Republican.

But it was an odd year for North Carolina politics -- there was no race for president, U.S. senator or even governor to draw people to the polls. Just 25 percent of voting-age adults cast ballots, leaving both sides to wonder how the dynamics will change in a presidential election year that also includes a high-profile races for governor and U.S. Senate.

Linda Ingram, 49, who met Kissell this month when he knocked on her door in the working-class hamlet of Hope Mills, didn't vote in 2006 but is headed to the polls this year.

"I was just thinking about the need to vote Democratic down the line," said Ingram, who is black and voting for Obama. She saw a vote for Kissell as another way to support Obama, "because the president is going to need help in Congress to push his agenda."

As of last Wednesday, with the aid of Obama's field organization, Democrats had expanded their voter-registration rolls in North Carolina by 277,246 this year, compared with a GOP registration gain of 57,514. For the first time, North Carolina will allow same-day registration during an early-voting period that began Thursday and ends Nov. 1, giving campaigns yet another chance to identify unregistered voters and get them to vote.

Kissell, 57, is a former textile plant manager who became a high school civics teacher seven years ago. Hayes, 63, is an heir to the Cannon Mills textile fortune. With a personal wealth of nearly $79 million, he was ranked fifth-richest member of Congress by Roll Call.

In an election year in which the economy is the top issue and in a district that has lost about 60,000 jobs in the past decade, Kissell's standard pitch is heavy on populism.