Two years ago, Lincoln Chafee '75 was a Republican senator. After losing his re-election bid for one of Rhode Island's Senate seats and leaving his party, he has thrown his support behind the Democratic nominee.Chafee, a visiting fellow at the Watson Institute for International Studies, campaigned for Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) in Florida last week to encourage Republican and independent voters to support Obama in his bid to become president.Chafee and local Republicans spoke to groups in the Fort Myers, Tampa and Orlando, Fla. areas to "send the message to like-minded Republicans ... that this (election) is more important than any party," Chafee said."When the Rhode Island presidential primary was approaching last March, I realized that as an independent I could choose to vote in the Republican or Democratic primary," Chafee said. After considering the candidates, he chose to vote for Obama in the Democratic primary. It was the first time he had ever voted for a Democrat.Chafee said he based his decision on Obama's "message of where he wants to take this country and the exceptional professionalism of his campaign." The country needs "immense repair work ... on the economy and international relations and (the government's) credibility," Chafee said. He said he believes Obama is the candidate best able to get the job done.While other campaigns had "management shake-ups and cost overruns," Chafee said, Obama ran a "frugal organization where people work well with each other," demonstrating his strong leadership.Chafee contacted Obama's campaign over the summer and told them that he was willing to help in any way he could. A number of other prominent Republicans - including former Rep. James Leach from Iowa and Rita Hauser, a former fundraiser for President George W. Bush - also signed on to help through Republicans for Obama, an organization dedicated to encouraging Republicans and independents to support the Democratic senator.The group, created in 2006, had originally been a grassroots organization aimed at reaching out to dissatisfied Republicans. With the endorsement of politicians like Chafee, Republicans for Obama has now revamped its efforts and gained national attention by working closely with the Obama campaign.Chafee could be traveling even more this semester - he may be visiting Pennsylvania in the near future - in order to concentrate campaign efforts in swing states. He said he does not anticipate these travels interfering with his commitments at Brown."Unfortunately for Rhode Island, there's not a lot of emphasis because it's such a Democratic state," Chafee said. Chafee's support of Obama did not surprise some political activists on campus. "Senator Obama really does have an appeal to people across the political spectrum," said Max Chaiken '09, coordinator of Brown's Students for Barack Obama and a Herald opinion columnist. "A lot of his policies are left of center, but some are right of center. He appeals to moderate Republicans like Chafee."
