Sunday, Nov. 01, 2009

Mudslinging trend accompanies Myrtle Beach campaigns

On the outside looking in, this year's municipal election in Myrtle Beach might appear interesting.

But from the inside, it's nasty.

"This is the dirtiest election season," said Myrtle Beach City Councilwoman Susan Grissom Means, a longtime political insider and daughter of former Myrtle Beach Mayor Robert M. Grissom. "I've never seen as much mudslinging as I have this year."

Paul Peterson, political science professor at Coastal Carolina and local election watcher, agrees, but, he and another expert say, it's not unusual.

"It's not just locally or in South Carolina," said Robert Oldendick, a political science professor at the University of South Carolina. "The general trend is that campaigns are getting more negative."

It's a trend that's not likely to change, either, because it works, the professors said. Negative ads sway voters and galvanize supporters.

"I've got a pretty thick skin, but it has, at times, made me think twice about being part of the process," said Myrtle Beach City Councilman Randal Wallace, who's running for his third term this fall. Wallace, like Means, is a long-time political watcher and participant. He said he's disgusted by the race this year and has been the focus, along with the other three incumbents, of accusations of taking political payback campaign donations and more.

"There have been a lot of lies and distortions," he said. "It has been an orchestrated effort for more than a year now. They attack us like we're not even human beings. The attacks and smears against [Mayor John Rhodes] - I don't know how he can take it. Just because we have different views on where the city should go from here, that doesn't make anyone bad people, or evil."

This year's race in Myrtle Beach is focusing around two extremely polarizing issues - the May motorcycle rallies and the new 1 percent tourism development tax.

"People on both sides feel very strongly," said Means, whose term is not up. "These are very divisive issues, and I think it has made a big difference this time."

Even when her father lost his longtime mayor's seat to then-newcomer Mark McBride in 1997, the campaign went a bit negative, she said. That was nothing like this year, when attacks over the rallies and the tax have gotten bundled into ads that attack the family members of people who aren't even elected officials.

"But my dad was big on being positive," Means said. "He used to say you can disagree without being disagreeable. I just don't understand why the campaigns get so personal, and why some people make personal attacks when they themselves are vulnerable to the same kinds of criticism. It doesn't make sense."

But, Oldendick said, the negative ads are the ones that usually have the memorable tag lines. It's not until the public reaches a saturation point - an ad crosses a line that resonates with voters or is blatantly false - that voters reject it.

Except, of course, in the 2008 presidential race, when some traditionally red states, like North Carolina, flipped to blue after last-minute negative attacks by GOP candidates against their Democratic challengers.

Like Wallace, most of the candidates in this year's race must have thick skins. But Means said she worries this kind of campaign scares off people who might otherwise consider taking part in the political process.

Peterson said he sees little connection, though.

"Each election is its own universe," Peterson said. "In some cases, [candidates] think the nastiness will not affect them or their campaign. In other cases, people are willing to go through this to serve what they think is the larger public good. There is a third kind of candidate/office holder who does not care. He wants to hold office to enhance his own visibility, to be someone 'important.' For that person, nastiness is a price to pay to achieve what are largely personal goals. And if they can be nastier than the others, they often see this as a badge of honor."

Peterson said he expects a higher-than-usual voter turnout in Myrtle Beach this year because of the interest in the race. As of Thursday, about 275 voters had turned in absentee ballots for the Myrtle Beach election, according to records from the Horry County Office of Voter Registration and Elections. Elections officials said that number was high for traditional turnout in local elections and considering the city has 13,917 active registered voters.

Although conventional wisdom suggests a race with 18 candidates for four seats will produce at least one runoff, many people say they hope it all ends with one vote count on Tuesday. Many of the most negative ads and attacks come in the last few days of a campaign, when the target has no time or money left to respond. Oldendick said that's especially true in local races, where candidates raise much less money than in national races.

"It has taken some of the fun out of public service," Wallace said. "You're always braced for what's going to happen next."

Staff writer Claudia Lauer contributed to this story.