Running Blue in a Red State; William Barnes Takes on Richard Shelby

—Oct. 22, 2010 -- What's it like to run as a Democratic U.S. Senate contender in Alabama this election year? For GOP stalwart Sen. Richard Shelby's opponent William Barnes, it means answering your own phones.

When ABC News recently reached out to Barnes' campaign office, the voice on the other end of the line was not an intern, nor a press secretary, but the very man waging an uphill battle against a four-term incumbent senator.

"This is the candidate, himself," Barnes said, picking up the line at his small law practice in downtown Birmingham.

The rare interaction was enough to catch any political journalist off guard; most Senate campaigns are knee-deep in personnel. It isn't every day you have a 'red phone' to the man or woman at the top.

But Lisa Ward, Barnes' campaign administrator, said a direct line to the 61-year-old Democrat is no coincidence.

"He does it on purpose. He likes to talk to as many people as he possibly can," Ward said. "I've seen him drive 40 minutes just so he can put a sign on an old lady's yard."

Barnes, a former Army psychologist, has no illusions of grandeur about the likely November outcome. The latest polling shows Shelby up by nearly 30 points, the Barnes campaign is short on cash, and Shelby has an impressive campaign war chest currently exceeding $17 million, according to the most recent FEC disclosures.

Not since Sen. Howell Heflin's retirement in 1997 has a Democrat represented Alabama in the U.S. Senate. So what compelled Barnes, a political novice with limited financial resources, to seek federal office? He said the notion came to him four years ago, amid the daily duties of being a father.

"I used to take my daughter to school in downtown Birmingham. And there was this old political billboard [of Shelby] next to the highway, and it intrigued me, and my research revealed that in all his years in the Senate, he never had any serious contenders in any of his races," Barnes said. "That just planted a seed in my mind."

Shelby Is A Force No Other Democrat Would Take On

As the years passed, that seed of curiosity grew. And in late 2009, on the verge of making a decision on his candidacy, Barnes contacted the Alabama Democratic Party, and asked who was being going to battle it out with Shelby. The answer was succinct: not a clue.

"They told me 'he's got too much money. He's got $13 million,'" said Barnes. "My response was, 'That shouldn't stop anybody from running in our free democratic society.'"

While Barnes' candidacy may be indicative of democracy in action, the Alabama contest lacks most of the traditional markers of a race for U.S. Senate. There have been no television ads from either campaign – in Shelby's case, a lack of need; in Barnes' case, a lack of cash – no debates held, and none scheduled. The two men have never met.

A Shelby spokesman told ABC News that the lack of interaction between the two men is not an anomaly.

"Sen. Shelby never takes a race for granted, but he always focuses on running his own race," the spokesman said. "His strong voting record shows that he listens carefully to the views of the people of Alabama, and votes for their interests."

For Barnes – who supports the Democrat-passed health care reform, and strongly advocates weaning the country off fossil fuels in favor of alternative energy sources – whatever his public perception, whatever his chances, his desire to stay in the race mirrors the sentiment that kicked off an unlikely candidacy nearly one year ago.

"If you keep voting the same old way, then you're going to keep getting the same old results," said Barnes. "And if no one will run against him, then by golly, I will."