NC Students for Rick Perry heads to South Carolina to campaign for the upcoming primary

A group of North Carolina students will be traveling to South Carolina to give their favorite candidate a boost in the upcoming primary.

Known as N.C. Students for Rick Perry, the group’s main goal is to help the Texas governor swing the Palmetto State on Jan. 21.

But Perry performed poorly in the Iowa and New Hampshire primaries. His campaign now hinges on success in South Carolina.

Despite Perry’s poor performance, N.C. Students for Rick Perry hopes to motivate South Carolina voters, said Brendan Madigan, the group’s chairman.

UNC

“We plan to do everything from phone banking for the campaign to working at the polls during the primary,” he said in an email.

The group, which has more than 160 members, will pay for the trip to South Carolina with funding from Perry’s campaign.

Sarah Treul, an assistant political science professor at UNC, said it is unlikely that Perry will win the state due to the many divisions among evangelicals and Tea Party voters.

But she said she doubts Perry will drop out.

“I would expect Perry’s goal, realistically, is to outperform (Newt) Gingrich in the S.C. primary and maybe even finish second,” she said.

She said groups like N.C. Students for Rick Perry could help his campaign.

“The (young people’s) best contributions often are their time and enthusiasm,” Treul said.

Greg Steele, chairman of UNC College Republicans, said South Carolina will be a pivotal turning point for Perry.

“How he places in South Carolina — that’ll decide where he goes,” he said.

“He didn’t do as well as many people expected during debates. He does have a lot of support in South Carolina.”

N.C. Students for Rick Perry is not directly linked with College Republicans, which has not yet endorsed a candidate, Steele said.

The group will only officially endorse the nominee, he said.

Madigan said he thinks Perry can win the South Carolina primary.

“Perry is the only consistent conservative in the race for the Republican nomination and has a strong record as Governor of Texas,” he said.

But if Perry’s bid for the nomination fails, Madigan said the group will support the Republican who wins it.

Austin Gilmore, president of UNC Young Democrats, said November’s presidential election will be harder for Barack Obama to win than in 2008 because the Democratic Party lacks a primary.

But Gilmore said he remains optimistic about the fate of the election.

“There is no reason why we can’t turn N.C. blue,” he said.

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