VALDOSTA – When President Donald Trump visits Valdosta Saturday evening, Mary Blocker will be there.

She is excited Trump is coming to town. 

Not everyone agrees. 

The Lowndes County Republican Party member said she is excited about the presidential visit in part because she believes it will benefit GOP Senate candidates.

“He’s helped them in the past and I’m sure that it will encourage Republicans to get out and vote,” she said, adding the visit will help restore trust in the voting process. “We Republicans are going to do all that we can do to make sure that we can get the vote out.”

Hosted by the Republican National Committee, Trump’s “victory rally” is scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5, at the Valdosta Regional Airport, in support of incumbent GOP Georgia Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, both in hotly contested runoff races that will determine the balance of power in the U.S. Senate. 

Trump’s scheduled visit has sparked both excitement and anger from South Georgia residents.

Scott Demott, chairman of the Lowndes County Republican Party, said the visit puts a spotlight on other parts of Georgia. The election isn’t just controlled by voters in Atlanta but all of Georgia, he said.

“It’s a good reminder that we matter, too, down here – every vote matters – and that there’s a lot at stake in this upcoming (Jan. 5 Senate) runoff election,” Demott said.

Not all Republicans are so enthused.

Coronavirus concerns

Spud Bowen of Tifton, owner of Spud Bowen and Associates and a Republican, said he won’t be attending the rally because of COVID-19. He regularly looks after his elderly parents.

“It will be good for the rally if it’s about Perdue and Kelley Loeffler and how we need to go vote but I am certainly not in the mood to hear any more name calling,” Bowen said. “Discussions have gone out of the window now if you don’t agree with folks and that’s both sides.”

Bowen said he would like to see Democrats and Republicans mend the division and have civil discussions regardless of initial thoughts and beliefs.

But, he added, few people are having civil conversations.

Beverly Manning, a Tift County esthetician and Democrat, also thinks the rally will increase the COVID-19 spike in South Georgia. 

“Considering that a majority of Trump supporters are anti-maskers, it is obvious that this will cause an even greater spike in cases,” she said.

Manning said she believes the election process was fair and honest and has faith in the process for the upcoming runoff elections. 

“I would hope to be able to trust the election process because I don’t want to be a conspiracy theorist by any means and it seems that Georgia has been very transparent and honest about the election and I think we will see the same for the upcoming runoff elections,” Manning said.

“I think it’s absolutely time for the President to concede. He is wasting money paying for recounts and the numbers are turning out in favor of Biden, but it is frankly quite embarrassing for the country that he isn’t conceding like every president has done before.”

‘Absurd comedy’

Valdosta attorney Roy Copeland called the visit a “comedy of the absurd.” 

He’s an independent voter who said he has leaned more toward Democratic candidates in recent elections.

To him, the rally isn’t a good idea but he adds Trump has never had a good idea in his opinion. 

“I don’t support anything he stands for,” Copeland said. “He’s a person who has not done anything to make this country great. I think he’s here to rile up his base to support some of the false claims he’s propagated since the election.”

Copeland said he hopes the visit will torpedo the incumbent senators’ campaigns. And if it does backfire, he said he hopes they won’t invite Trump back.

“I hope Trump loses support from his own party,” Copeland said. “It has grown past time for him to concede. Any respectable president would’ve done so, but he’s not respectable.”

Setting priorities

Steve Nichols describes himself as a constitutional conservative who hosts a Valdosta talk radio show. He said Trump’s visit to Valdosta is a good move – if he focuses on campaigning for Perdue and Loeffler.

“I see it as helpful if he spends his time really encouraging the voters to retain the Senate,” Nichols said. “But if he spends his entire time talking about himself and his election issues, it could be a hinderance.”

As for where Perdue and Loeffler stand in the upcoming runoff against Democratic opponents Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock respectively, Nichols said he doesn’t think anyone knows where it is headed; he expects another “razor-thin” outcome.

“There’s a lot at stake and I think it’s proper that he, as an elected Republican president, help push Republicans over the line,” Nichols said.

Still, no matter what happens, Georgians and Americans will accuse the other side of cheating he thinks. 

“That’s the perception of the public; no matter which side of the aisle you’re on they’ll say you cheated,” Nichols said. “There will always be an accusation of wrong doing on both sides. It’s just where we are.”

South Ga. strategy

Dr. James LaPlant, Valdosta State University dean of the College of Humanities and Social Science and professor of political science, did not want his political affiliation known, adding he wants to be known for what he is: a political scientist.

Looking at Trump’s Valdosta visit, LaPlant said the strategy makes complete sense.

“I think fundamentally what it reflects is that they have to drive up turn out in rural areas of the state,” LaPlant said. “Those are your most Republican areas.”

He said more northern portions of the state, such as Atlanta and Macon, will more than likely come in blue, meaning the attention of Trump and the Republican Senate campaign must be focused on the south. Rural South Georgia was the key to Kemp’s victory, LaPlant added.

While the strategy may be sound, LaPlant said the tone and direction of the president’s speech during his visit will showcase whether or not it is a “success” for rallying on behalf of Perdue and Loeffler.

“If it’s this continued rhetoric about fraud in the election, it’s hard to think how that helps the candidates,” he said.

According to LaPlant, Republican strategists have noted a continued distrust in the votes could depress voter turnout, which would be the opposite of what they want.

LaPlant attended Trump’s first visit to Valdosta in 2016 as a political scientist and said Trump’s election will certainly make a mark in history books.

“I think the Trump election really represented a perfect storm of factors that catapulted him to victory over Clinton,” LaPlant said. “He governed to his base and still garnered a massive number of votes in this election. Will that ever be replicated? I don’t know. He is such a unique figure.”

Desiree Carver, Amanda M. Usher, Billy Malone and Dean Poling contributed to this report.