Most at Oglethorpe GOP Forum Support Donald Trump

In a straw poll taken Thursday night at an Oglethorpe County candidate forum, almost three quarters of those participating fully supported Donald Trump as the Republican nominee for the presidency. 74% supported Trump, 8% said they were part of the #NeverTrump movement, and 18% said they would vote for the reality show star turned candidate “only if I have to.”

Whether these numbers fairly represent the voters of northeast Georgia is open to discussion. What is interesting to note is the changing opinions of voters in Lexington and the surrounding area over time. Last August 15th, the Oglethorpe GOP held a straw poll at its annual pancake supper. The results:

Ted Cruz 29%
Donald Trump 13%
Jeb Bush 12%
Mike Huckabee 8%
Marco Rubio 8%
Scott Walker 8%
Undecided 6%
All Others 18%

By December, some candidates had left the race, and opinions began to firm up. At the Christmas in Oglethorpe celebration in mid-December, which included a wider group of people than GOP regulars, the results were:

Donald Trump 42.9%
Ted Cruz 10.0%
Ben Carson 9.6%
Marco Rubio 4.6%
Mike Huckabee 2.3%
All Others 6.4%
Undecided: 23.7%

Like many in Georgia and throughout the country, some voters in Oglethorpe County are not completely sold on a Donald Trump presidency. Let’s see if their opinions change by the time of this summer’s pancake supper.