Tammy Wilson is exactly the kind of voter a presidential
candidate would love to have in his or her camp.
She follows the debates, knows the issues, and she tells her family whom to support - and they listen, she says.
And Wilson, 36, just made up her mind on whom she'll support Feb. 5.
"I was for Hillary until I started studying Obama ... then I said 'I like that man - I feel what he says,'" said Wilson, a government worker who lives in Long Beach. "Now it's 'Oh, Hillary is on, let me change the channel.'"
National polls show that Wilson's shift from Hillary Rodham Clinton to Barack Obama has been common among blacks, who have been reliable Democrats and Clinton supporters.
Now, after strong wins in Iowa and South Carolina and endorsements this week from Sen. Ted Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg, daughter of President John F. Kennedy, some local blacks say Obama has something that no other black presidential candidate has had before - electability. Still, others, including the majority of African-American elected officials, are backing Clinton.
"I can't overlook her experience and expertise," said Henry Haney, 75, a retired landscaper who lives in East Hampton. "Obama has a lot to offer for the future, but I don't see how much he's offering for the present."
But what some viewed as racially tinged comments aimed at Obama haven't helped Hillary Clinton's standing among black folks, some say.
"Every time Obama is attacked, Hillary hemorrhages black voters," said Nassau County Legis. Roger Corbin (D-Westbury).
In poll results released Jan. 21, Obama led Clinton 67 percent to 26 percent among blacks. Clinton, however, has the support of top Democratic officials, including Hempstead Town Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby, Nassau County Legis. Kevan Abrahams (D-Hempstead), Assemb. Earlene Hooper and Mayor Wayne Hall of the Village of Hempstead.
"Clinton understands our needs and our problems," said Goosby. "When I needed her here in Hempstead, she came."
But that support has caused consternation among some blacks.
"Not one African-American elected official in Nassau or Suffolk has stepped forward to support Barack Obama. It's a damn shame," said Douglas Mayers, of Freeport, who backs Obama.
Yesterday, Mayers held an Obama rally in Freeport which attracted about 25 people - including former Hempstead Village Mayor James Garner, a Republican. Garner said he won't cross party lines to vote for Obama, but is "inspired by Obama's message.
Ivan Young, a Bay Shore attorney and Democratic party leader agrees.
"For Senator Obama to become the first African-American president ... I can imagine what sort of tone that would set for the rest of the world," Young, 42, said. "The fact that he could ... is not a fairy tale."
Fannie Rustin, a retired church secretary in her 70s, said, "He just popped up a few years ago, and that is why I can't get too excited about Obama," she said. "I am staying with Hillary," she said. "And as we black women do, I'm praying for her."
Long Island's black voters
Estimates, by political party
Nassau
Democrats - 36,111
Republicans - 11,116
Other - 10,482
Total - 57,709
Suffolk
Democrats - 14,008
Republicans - 2,698
Other - 4,637
Total - 21,343
NOTE: Figures represent voters from predominantly black neighborhoods.
SOURCE: PRIME NEW YORK