Candidates working hard to be seen, heard

By Elizabeth Sharp (Contact)

LITTLE ROCK — Incumbents and new candidates alike have been hot on the campaign trail in anticipation of a high voter turnout in this year’s Saline County elections.

Tim Dudderar, 45, of Bryant, who is running for the Republican race for sheriff, said that he thinks the high voter turnout - there were 370 voters the first day of early voting on May 5 - has been because of the sheer number of candidates and contested races.

“There’s more concern for county government, and people want to get involved,” Dudderar said.

As such, candidates have been venturing far and wide in order to meet Saline County’s 60,000 registered voters face to face. Dudderar said the most effective campaign tool for him has been simply going and talking to people one-on-one across the country.

“If you’re like me and you’re not a public speaker, it’s a lot easier to talk one-on-one than to a group,” Dudderar said. “You’re more relaxed, and you have time to answer their questions.”

And Carol “Ann” Sanders, 45, of Bryant, who is running against Lanny Fite in the race for county judge, said that the importance of meeting face-to-face can’t be underestimated.

“Some of the people just want you to sit down and talk to them,” she said.

“In the far, outer parts of the county, they feel like they’ve been left out. They don’t feel like they’re represented. When you go out and you talk to some of them, they want to visit and the want to get to know you. They just want to know you before they vote for you.”

James Ward, 31, of Alexander, Dudderar’s opponent in the Republican race for sheriff, said that he started campaigning more than a year ago and has made an effort to appear at as many club meetings and community events as possible since then.

Ward said he’s done the same thing as a businessman for years in Saline County.

“When you’re networking inbusiness and getting out in front of people, you’re pushing yourself, you’re selling yourself - in this case, I’m telling them who I am and what I want to do.”

And Dudderar and Ward said campaigning itself become a full-time job. Fite, 58, of Benton, is the incumbent candidate for county judge, and he said that there are many days he wakes up at 5 o’clock and isn’t done visiting groups until 8 or 9 p.m.

And even then, the work doesn’t stop - Fite said he employs other methods to supplement meetings with voters in person.

“In a county our size, it’s impossible to meet all of them,” he said.

“I had an opponent in 2004, and basically some mail- outs and newspapers ads is what we did then. The strategy today has changed drastically. I have a Web site, multiple mail-outs, commercials running on local cable channels [and] newspaper ads.”

A nd keeping themselves present in voters’ minds is something candidates are trying to do right up to the voting booth. Ward said he has joined other candidates in holding up signs to grab voters’ attention as they enter the polling locations.

“I’ve been campaigning; now, it’s time for them to see my smiling face when they come to vote,” Ward said.

Tri-Lakes, Pages 61, 63 on 05/15/2008