'Georgia values': UGA football star Herschel Walker taps GOP hotbed for support

Herschel Walker campaigned in Republican battleground territory Friday in his bid to unseat U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, the Democrat who helped flip Georgia blue last year.

Strongly endorsed by former president Donald Trump, Walker is the Heisman trophy winner who led the University of Georgia to a National Championship in the early 1980s. He grew up in Wrightsville, about an hour from Augusta.

At the Columbia County Republican Headquarters in Martinez, a GOP stronghold, Walker stayed on point with statements about his rural upbringing, support for police and love of country.

“What qualifies me? I love the United States of America,” he said.

Recently endorsed by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Walker said Friday it was a “dumb idea” to defund the police, something that’s not occurred in Georgia, and that Democrats “want to take your 2nd Amendment away.”

More: Loeffler determined to get camp allegations to stick to Warnock

Sintonio Hobbs, an airline employee from Augusta, said he’s an Independent who supports Walker. Hobbs was very young when Walker led the Bulldogs to the championship but said he collects Walker’s NFL cards.

“He’s a wonderful guy. First of all, he’s a Christian. He’s a world-class athlete. He knows about Georgia values and what we stand for in Georgia,” Hobbs said.

The contest – first to win the Republican primary in May and then the general election in November 2022– will be close, he said.

“As long as he stays on point with his message and reaches everyone – the moderates, the Democrats and the Republicans and he gets everyone together, he can win,” Hobbs said.

Hobbs said as an African-American independent, he doesn’t think as much about party.

“At times the party changes their values, so you can’t be too much concerned if you’re a Republican or a Democrat, just listen to the issues,” he said.

In the past Hobbs said he watched previously Democratic politicians – former governors Nathan Deal and Sonny Perdue – switch to the GOP.

“Once your district starts changing, you change parties. Like Herschel said, you’ve got career politicians now,” he said.

Support wasn’t universal at the campaign rally, and several in the county have come out in support of candidate Gary Black, the former state agriculture commissioner.

With announced support from Columbia County Sheriff Clay Whittle and a handful of area GOP politicians, Black recently came out swinging about Walker’s history of domestic violence, suicidal tendencies and violent outbursts.

Walker, who lived in Texas for many years prior to announcing his candidacy, has been candid about his struggle with mental illness but denies abusing women.

Columbia County GOP Chairwoman Debbie McCord (no relation to this reporter) introduced Walker as “the first” the party will hear from in Augusta, and that she hopes more candidates will come.

At the same time, name recognition is "everything" in a campaign, she said, and Walker has it in droves.

More: New gas station stickers will assist those in Georgia with disabilities — starting in Augusta

“The name recognition is fantastic with Herschel Walker,” she said.

Columbia County District Attorney Bobby Christine, whom Trump appointed as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, said he was at the event “in the district attorney lane” to welcome the group, but said Walker would succeed as senator.

“He’s a devoted man of faith, a devoted family man – I think he would do a magnificent job,” Christine said.

Warnock faces reelection this year because his runoff defeat of Sen. Kelly Loeffler in January was only to serve the rest of her term. The win, along with Sen. Jon Ossoff’s defeat of Republican David Perdue and Georgia’s overall support for President Joe Biden flipped Georgia blue. A November defeat would shift the balance of power in the U.S. Senate back to the GOP.

More: Herschel Walker endorses Trump, talks ’deep, personal friendship’ during RNC night 1

Republicans have long outnumbered outnumber Democrats in the suburban county, but Democrats made slight inroads in last year's presidential and Senate elections.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Herschel Walker campaigned in a Republican battleground on Friday