Mayor Adrian Fenty on Friday opened Barack Obama‘s D.C. headquarters in Southeast, firing up more than a hundred supporters who anticipate a big victory in next week’s Potomac Primary.
Looking as comfortable on the stump as he did during his mayoral campaign, Fenty told the crowd gathered outside 1225 Pennsylvania Ave. SE that Obama is the “right candidate at the right time with the right message and the right values.”
“Ready to go,” the mayor said as he led a diverse audience in chants of “O-ba-ma” and “Yes we can!”
“Our votes will count,” said Fenty, who endorsed Obama last July. “We’ve got delegates at stake, and we want to show the rest of the country where those delegates should go.”
Sen. Hillary Clinton‘s campaign, while filled with well-known D.C. supporters, has no District headquarters – perhaps an acknowledgment that Obama has the advantage. Clinton’s Web site lists “Election Day” as the only upcoming event for her supporters, though it does provide a link to volunteer by making phone calls, canvassing or getting out the vote.
“I have a yard sign, I’ve given the maximum amount money and I’ve lent my name to the effort, but I haven’t been out there operationally,” said Ward 3 D.C. Councilwoman Mary Cheh, who sits on Clinton’slocal steering committee. “I don’t know how the mayor has all the time to do what he does.”
The Obama campaign office will remain open through Wednesday to organize volunteer efforts and plot primary-day outreach. On Friday, people grabbed their yard signs, picked up reams of Obama literature and offered to work the polls. Fenty said the Obama campaign still had not decided whether the senator would visit D.C. before Tuesday.
“I think it’s going to be a competitive race,” Fenty said. “Sen. Obama’s opponent has a big name in Washington, D.C., so we have our work cut out for us.”
Mary Williams, of Southwest, described Obama as a “centrist who can bring people together,” someone who will “inspire [the] uninspired.”
“We finally feel like we can do something and contribute,” Williams said. “We can make a difference.”
