Kerry has not been back to South Carolina since he kicked off his campaign aboard the USS Yorktown in September. And while Kerry doesn't have the state organization he had in Iowa and New Hampshire, voters like winners anyway, Winthrop University political science professor Scott Huffmon said. Kerry won big in Iowa on Jan. 19 and in New Hampshire on Tuesday.

"You don't have momentum like Kerry does and get blanked anywhere," Huffmon said.

U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, the highest ranking black person in Congress and South Carolina's first elected black representative since Reconstruction, was expected to endorse Kerry today.

Edwards, a Seneca native who has conceded that South Carolina is make or break for him, must distinguish himself in tonight's debate and over the next few days to separate himself from the pack, said Rick Whisonant, a political science and history instructor at York Technical College.

"John Edwards has to win South Carolina, period," Whisonant said. "He has to put it all on the table. If not, he's done."

Edwards will probably reinforce his Southern roots and mill family heritage, said local Edwards volunteer Russell Ferguson but probably not attack any other candidates.

"I think Senator Edwards will stay positive in the debate," Ferguson said. "It's not just talk. It is what he believes."

South Carolina has a different racial makeup than Iowa or New Hampshire, with half of the 250,000 voters expected to be black. Sharpton has crisscrossed the state speaking to black audiences.

"Our own internal polls show Reverend Sharpton running second and rising," said John Barnett of the Sharpton campaign.

"Sharpton is speaking to a constituency that feels it has been taken for granted," Huffmon said. "We are about to see the pinnacle of Al Sharpton's candidacy. This will be his best showing."

Besides Sharpton, both Edwards and Clark have made several appearances at black churches and events in the state. All three vied unsuccessfully for Clyburn's endorsement.

U.S. Rep John Spratt, D-S.C., of York, and Clyburn backed congressional peer Missouri Rep. Dick Gephardt out of loyalty until Gephardt dropped out after Iowa.

"The importance of Clyburn appearing on the same stage with Kerry can't be measured here in South Carolina," Whisonant said. "Jim Clyburn is the most recognizable face in the state among black voters."

Spratt has not endorsed anyone since but is "looking at Kerry, Edwards and Clark in no particular order," Spratt spokesman Chuck Fant said Wednesday.

Clark, who finished third in New Hampshire, will speak at a labor rally at 1:30 p.m. today at the UNITE union hall at 1031 Mount Gallant Road in Rock Hill. About 18 percent of South Carolina voters remain undecided, local Clark volunteer Terry McDonald said, and Clark hopes to attract those voters in the next few days.

"What plays in New Hampshire doesn't play in South Carolina," McDonald said. "Down here it is different. We're in the game now."

Local supporters of former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean haven't yielded anything in South Carolina to the other candidates, however. Dean, considered the national front-runner before Iowa, finished second in New Hampshire after a third-place finish in Iowa.

"I feel a lot better after new Hampshire than I did after Iowa," said local Dean volunteer Kristal DeKleer.

Contact Andrew Dys at 329-4065 or mailto:adys@heraldonline.com