Chambliss expressed frustration with the partisan gridlock in the nation’s capitol and cited the 2011 debt-ceiling debate and recent fiscal-cliff vote as proof the country’s legislators are more interested in scoring political victories than ensuring the continued prosperity of the country.
Chambliss has not been a friend to the LGBT community during his time in Washington. He voted against “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal, the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act and is a supporter of the Defense of Marriage Act.
A telephone poll of more than 1,000 Georgia voters conducted over the weekend by GAPundit.com found that former Ga. Gov. Sonny Perdue currently leads the crop of potential candidates set to replace Chambliss in Washington.
“If Governor Sonny Perdue decides to run for the U.S. Senate, he immediately becomes the front-runner, though it’s not a prohibitive lead,” said Todd Rehm, editor of GaPundit.com. Perdue received some 22.4 percent support among likely voters.
Perdue served as governor of Georgia during the successful 2004 battle to pass a constitutional amendment in Georgia to ban same-sex marriage.
Former Secretary of State and gubernatorial candidate Karen Handel, the second place finisher in the survey with 15 percent, has been even more outspoken against gay equality, including marriage and adoption rights. Handel courted gay voters during her races for Fulton County Commission, then took a hard turn to the right in statewide races.
The rest of the field identified by GAPundit.com includes U.S. Reps. Paul Broun (10.3 percent), Tom Price (9.7 percent), Lynn Westmoreland (8.4 percent), Tom Graves (R-Ga.) (6.3 percent) and Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp (3.4 percent). 24.5 percent of those surveyed were “undecided.”
Westmoreland, Price and Graves all received scores of 0 out of 100 on the most recent Congressional Scorecard from the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBT political group. Broun scored 15 out of 100, as did Chambliss.
Who would you like to see run for Chambliss’ seat?
Laura Douglas-Brown contributed
Top photo: U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) (official photo)