WASHINGTON, D.C. -- To get an idea of how Democratic the District of Columbia is, one needs only to look at 1984, when Republican Ronald Reagan won 49 states in a nationwide landslide victory, but Democratic candidate Walter Mondale won here -- with 85 percent of the vote.Nevertheless, Republicans in the nation's capital say they are prepared and proud to support President Bush in today's presidential election, regardless of his chances of victory in the nation's capital.
Wayne Estrada, the Republican chairman for Ward Six, was frank about the political atmosphere facing the Republican Party in the District.
"It's pretty brutal," he said. "There's quite a bit of animosity toward Republicans here."
Estrada has been busy putting up signs for the Bush/Cheney ticket and local candidates and participating in get-out-the-vote efforts, but he said his primary responsibility tomorrow would be organizing volunteers at polling places.
D.C. Republican Party Chair Betsy Warronen said she thought the Republican presence in the District was growing, which she said was necessary to combat the "arrogance" resulting from the Democratic monopoly on political power.
"They think because they're the Democrats and they're tied in, they can do anything they want," Warronen said.
Still, with a Republican administration in town, Warronen said the D.C. Republicans have received a lot of help from officials with the national Bush/Cheney campaign.
"They have done a huge amount for our party," Warronen said.
Many of the District's universities, such as American University, Georgetown University, George Washington University and Howard University, have College Republican organizations that have campaigned hard for Bush this fall.
Although American University students tend to be more liberal than conservative, the school's College Republicans have campaigned vigorously for Bush this fall.The AU College Republicans sent students to Pennsylvania every weekend in October, sent students to Michigan this weekend, hosted several debates and held events featuring former Bush spokesperson Ari Fleischer and conservative Crossfire host Tucker Carlson, AU College Republicans President Mike Inganamort said.
Noting that most students were in the District only for their college years, Ingamamort said they tended to focus on national campaigns.
"Ninety percent of our focus has been on the presidential campaign," he said.
Inganamort said he felt good about Bush's chances today.
"I think tomorrow Bush is going to surprise some people," he said.
Christiaan DeLuigi, a senior at Georgetown University, said his participation with the D.C. Republican Committee has made him more aware of local races in the District. Those races, he said, were the best chance for Republicans to establish themselves in the District.
"I think the best way to build up a base of support is through local elections," DeLuigi said.
DeLuigi said he currently is registered to vote in the District and will serve as a precinct captain during today's election.
Although Georgetown, partly because of its Catholic background, is more Republican than many colleges, it is host to a variety of opinions on different issues, DeLuigi said.
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