SALINAS, Calif. -- Local Democrats and Republicans Speak Out on Paul Ryan as VP Pick. In campaign 2012 Mitt Romney announced Paul Ryan as his Vice Presidential candidate on Saturday. We spoke with local Republicans and Democrats and on both sides of the isle people are saying that this race is certainly heating up.
Romney's pick is generating new momentum for Central Coast Republicans. Regional Campaign Manager John Hanson said the number of people involved has easily doubled. "I think this is a vital campaign for the voters and for the country because they go to decide which way this country goes," said Hanson.
On Saturday Democratic Regional Director Shawn Bagley told me it's a different kind of momentum for the local democrats. "We had a surge or volunteers since Ryan, we saw a surge of people who want to volunteer online," said Bagley.
In a few weeks campaign offices are expected to be packed with volunteers making campaign calls for each party. "Our job as a local party as a local activist is to help people vote," said Bagley.
Keeping in mind election day is only a few short months away, both Democrats and Republicans are doing as much outreach as they can to gain the most votes. "It's also to win with more people being interested in what's happening in this state," said Hanson.
With Paul Ryan on the ticket, local Democrats say they're still confident they will be successful in this election. "He's very conservative. He's just amazingly conservative. He wants to de-fund Planned Parenthood and he voted against Don't Ask Don't Tell," said Bagley.
Republicans also believe they're in for a win, because of the state of the economy. "With Paul Ryan appointed yesterday as the VP. He understands about monetary matters and about the economy," said Hanson.
Both parties agree the 2012 Presidential race to the White House will be a very close call.
