PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- As the candidates battle over Pennsylvania and its 21 vital electoral votes, the longtime Democratic stronghold of Philadelphia appears a given for John Kerry's column.
But while Kerry maintains what appears to be a comfortable hold in the city, Philadelphia supporters appear in the grip of the ABB phenomenon -- Anybody But Bush.
"I would vote for a cantaloupe if it was the other candidate," Kerry supporter Bill LeFevre told United Press International.
Philadelphia resident Shelby Wilson described a vote for Kerry as "the lesser of two evils."
"Anybody's better than Bush," said Anthony Baker, 20, an artist and nursing-home worker.
Vice President Al Gore carried Philadelphia County nearly 5-to-1 over Bush in 2000, but he carried the state by just over 200,000 votes. Recent polls indicate Bush and Kerry remain neck-and-neck, and Bush has been campaigning hard in the state, including a visit Friday.
An informal poll of passing pedestrians yielded few Bush supporters.
"Anybody who doesn't vote for Kerry is insane ... (and) anybody who votes for Bush is a dummy," called one man, who did not stop to talk.
Voters cited issues ranging from the economy to the war in Iraq.
Angel Graham, 22, said she was voting for "not George Bush."
"(But) to tell you the truth I don't particularly like either of them," she said.
Graham said she was disturbed by the war in Iraq, which she said was "uncalled for."
"It's a waste of time, a waste of money and a waste of lives, honestly," she said. "No weapons were found."
C.M. Schwartz said he was supporting Kerry because "I hate the other guy."
"He's all wrong," Schwartz said of Bush, adding there was no one issue that struck him more than the others. "In general, totally we're going in the wrong direction, and we've got to get in the right direction," he said.
Jeff Snyder, 36, said he would vote for Kerry come Nov. 2.
"The economy sucks," said Snyder, who has been working on contract for two years without health insurance.
Baker, the artist and nursing-home worker, was one voter who had good things to say about Kerry. "He seems more organized than Bush -- he seems like he knows what he's doing," he said.
Kerry supporter Jeremy Barker, 25, a student at Temple University and a native of Allentown, Pa., had trouble thinking of anyone he knew who planned to vote for Bush besides his father.
"No, wait, there's a guy in my house from, like, Shillington. He says he's going to vote for Bush," he said.
Wilson, an Army veteran who served in Grenada, said he thought Republican efforts to discredit Kerry's record as a combat veteran of the Vietnam War "makes them look bad."
Wilson said he supported the war in Afghanistan but called the war in Iraq "a bunch of BS."
Afghanistan is "where the war on terror is, and that's where we should have all our troops."
LeFevre said he knew some friends who were voting for Bush but described them as a minority.
City Republicans acknowledge the difficulty of converting Kerry supporters. Philadelphia Republican Committee Chairman Vito Canuso said, however, they were getting great response from Republicans they were contacting as part of their voter-mobilization effort.
Supporters will continue to contact other registered voters, either by phone or in person, to encourage them to go to the polls and cast a vote for the president, he said.
But aside from their own base, Canuso told UPI they were leaving alone Democrats and, largely, undecided voters.
"There are people who say they're undecided and of course we've identified them and we've tried to put our best foot forwards with them, but I just don't think its realistic," he said.
"I also don't think people are undecided, but if they want to say so that's OK."
Of voters contacted in downtown Philadelphia only one man said he was undecided and likely would pick a candidate next week.
Accountant Rolando, who did not give his last name, said he voted for Bush in 2000 but remained undecided for this election.
He said his main concerns are the administration's reasons for going to war in Iraq and whether the president has made the necessary adjustments to the U.S. intelligence services to prevent another attack like those of Sept. 11, 2001.
He added that he "most likely" would vote for Bush.
Walking with Rolando was New Jersey resident Tim, another accountant who also did not want to give his last name.
Tim made fun of Rolando for remaining undecided. "What are you waiting for?" he asked incredulously.
Tim said he voted for Bush in 2000 and intended to vote to re-elect the president.
"I just want lower taxes," he said.
His New Jersey vote, however, would not affect Philly's final tally.
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