COLUMBIA, S.C. - Democrats lost a second
statewide candidate in a week Tuesday, but they say are optimistic
they will have a strong ticket in 2006.
Michael Hollings, 54, dropped out of the Democratic race for
lieutenant governor Tuesday, saying he wanted to continue his career
as a Columbia lawyer and lobbyist.
Hollings, the son of former U.S. Sen. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings,
said it would be a conflict of interest to continue lobbying or
representing clients if he were elected to the part-time job.
"I would have been proud to serve our state and I am disappointed
that circumstances do not permit me to continue my candidacy,"
Hollings said in a statement.
Hollings bowed out of his race one week after Education
Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum announced she would not run for a
third term in 2006.
Tenenbaum said she wanted to take a "political sabbatical" when
her term ends in 2007. She lost a high-profile U.S. Senate race last
year to Republican Jim DeMint.
Democratic Party Chairman Joe Erwin says he lost two different
types of candidates - Tenenbaum an incumbent, while Hollings is the
son of a longtime Democratic leader.
"You never like to lose somebody on your ticket who's a great
vote-getter," Erwin said of Tenenbaum. "We really expect to keep
that office because it's ... where voters really do see the
Democratic Party more in step with what the state needs."
Hollings' situation was different. "He's got a name that is
synonymous with South Carolina politics," Erwin said.
Erwin said he's actively recruiting candidates, but it just takes
more time. "I'm fully aware that we're underdogs."
Lachlan McIntosh, executive director of the Democratic Party,
said it's early in the campaign season and there is plenty of time
to find viable candidates.
"It's very early in the process for races like lieutenant
governor. The candidate recruitment process never really stopped,"
he said.
Michael Campbell, son of former Gov. Carroll Campbell, will face
Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer for the Republican nomination.
McIntosh and Erwin said they were confident they would find a
Democratic challenger.
"This year is about developing our bench and that's what we're
doing," McIntosh said. "We're going to have an outstanding ticket
that's going to offer a stark contrast to Republicans and what they
have been doing as the party in power."
Winthrop University political scientist Scott Huffmon said
Democrats need to reconnect with their foundation and regrow
themselves as a party in the state.
"This is just one more symptom of a kind of sick party or a party
that's struggling statewide," Huffmon said.
"They need every player they have in the game," he said.
It took Republicans decades to dominate the political scene. Now
the GOP controls all but two statewide offices and both chambers of
the Legislature.
"If the Democratic Party expects to have a similar rebirth, then
they certainly can't expect it to happen in one, two or probably
more election cycles."
Republican Party Chairman Katon Dawson said the odds looked grim
for the Democrats.
"When candidates with pedigrees like Inez Tenenbaum and Michael
Hollings decide not to run for office, it speaks volumes about the
state of the Democratic Party, nationally and locally," he said.
McIntosh said the GOP's record will attract voters at the polls
next year.
"The Republican Party has given us one of the highest
unemployment rates in the country, they've consistently underfunded
public education and they've produced one of the most anemic
wage-growth rates in the nation," McIntosh said. "I anticipate the
Democratic Party winning a lot of races in 2006."
Erwin agreed.
"I'm not nervous. This is just part of the process," Erwin
said.
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