CQ Voting Studies are an annual analysis of a member's support or opposition to a given position. Interest Group Ratings are based on rankings from groups chosen to represent liberal, conservative, business and labor viewpoints.Voting Participation scores are based on the number of times a member voted "yea" or "nay" on roll call votes (not including quorum calls in the House). CQ Vote Studies Year Presidential Support Party Unity   S* O* S O 1998 18% 82% 93% 6% 1997 20 67 87 3 S=Support; O=Oppose
Voting Participation Year % 1998 99 1997 88	Interest Groups Year ADA AFL-CIO CCUS ACU 1998 5% n/a 89% 100 % 1997 0 0 78 95
Note on Interest Groups: ADA=Americans for Democratic Action; AFL-CIO=American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations; CCUS=Chamber of Commerce of the United States; ACU=American Conservative Union

ALABAMA 3 : East - Anniston; Auburn

The 3rd can claim to be a microcosm of the entire state. It includes chicken farms, defense bases, textile plants and large universities scattered among mountains and rolling hills. Two large military facilities fuel the northern city of Anniston. The Army was removing its operations from Fort McClellan in 1999, but the Justice Department has turned the base into the nation's only chemical defense training facility. Although the change will cost thousands of jobs, it has boosted labor needs at the Anniston Army Depot. There also is an effort to attract companies that make gas masks and other gear.

In the south, Auburn U. is one of the state's largest employers and a leading agricultural research center. Although downsized, athletic apparel maker Russell Corp. is a mainstay in Tallapoosa County, where thousands of Birmingham and Montgomery vacationers flock to Lake Martin for recreation. Predominantly black Macon County is one of the nation's poorest.

Most of the 3rd's residents are socially conservative Democrats who have come to favor Republican presidential candidates. Constituents generally want low property taxes and oppose gun control. There are small pockets of liberalism in the university communities of Auburn and Jacksonville. Until 1996, the district had elected a Republican member of Congress just once since Reconstruction.

Major Industry
Higher education, agriculture, military

Military Bases
Fort McClellan (Army), 4,761 military, 2,340 civilian; Anniston Army Depot Activity, 2,600 civilian (1997)

Population
577,116 (1990)

Cities
Auburn, 37,664; Phenix City, 28,000; Anniston, 25,774 (1997)

People
47% rural; 13% age 65+ (ranks fourth of seven in state; middle third nationally); 58% married couples, 27% married couples with children; 12% college educated (ranks fifth of seven in state; bottom third nationally); 45% white collar (ranks fifth of seven in state; bottom third nationally), 41% blue collar (ranks second of seven in state; top third nationally) (1990)

Race
73% white, 26% black, 0% Asian; 1% Hispanic origin (1990)

Median Household Income
$21,594 (ranks fifth of seven; bottom third nationally) (1990)

Unusual Features
Tuskegee U., founded in 1881, one of the nation's first black colleges.

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