This is a printer friendly version of an article from
www.goupstate.com
To print this article open the file menu and choose
Print.
Back
Article published Jul 9, 2004
Republicans looking for some unity
Tom Langhorne
Staff
Writer
With a pair of bruising nominating contests behind them,
Spartanburg County Republicans will stage a Unity Rally next week -- but don't
expect to see the losers linking arms with the winners.Sheriff Bill Coffey, who
was handily defeated by challenger Chuck Wright in a June 22 GOP runoff
election, and businessman Lee Bright, who narrowly failed to unseat state Sen.
John Hawkins in a primary two weeks earlier, said Thursday that they will not
endorse the winning Republicans.In fact, Coffey declined to say whether he will
even vote for Wright against Democrat John M. "Jack" Owens in November's general
election, while Bright said he will not vote for Hawkins or Democratic
challenger Leonardo Ortiz.Bright said he won't attend the Unity Rally, set for 7
p.m. Thursday at GOP headquarters at 880 East Main Street, while Coffey said he
was unaware of the rally.Party chairman Rick Beltram criticized the two losing
candidates, saying most local Republicans have put last month's heated primary
contests behind them and have focused on defeating Democrats in November."If
(Coffey and Bright) want to hold grudges, that's their problem," Beltram
said.Coffey said he will not endorse fellow Republican Wright against Democrat
Owens because, "I'm out of this race.""The public certainly will have enough
knowledge to make that decision," the sheriff said. "It's up to them. I've
trusted them in the past. They can certainly figure this out without any help
from me."Asked if he will vote for Wright, Coffey would not answer."That's a
decision I don't think I need to make public," he said.Bright said he is still
smarting over "last-minute dirty tricks" for which he holds Hawkins responsible.
He cited acampaign letter by Hawkins' wife, Andrea, which accused him of
"misleading, dishonest, negative attacks."Bright also cited telephone calls to
voters during which, he said, he was accused of wanting to shut down B.J.
Workman Memorial Hospital."I don't know if Hawkins was behind the phone calls,
but it sure benefited his campaign," said Bright, who added that he is
"seriously considering" challenging Hawkins again in 2008.Asked whether he would
vote for Hawkins against Democrat Ortiz in November, Bright said, "I'll probably
slip past that on the ballot. That can happen from time to time."GOP Chairman
Beltram said Coffey and Bright should follow the example set by former Gov.
David Beasley, who heartily endorsed U.S. Rep. Jim DeMint after DeMint defeated
him to take the party's U.S. Senate nomination last month."(Coffey and Bright)
were asking the party to stay out of their primaries and support them if they
won," Beltram said. "Now that they're not the winners, they're going in a
different direction… I'm sorry they're taking it so hard."Barry Winn, former
chairman of the county and state GOP organizations and a member of President
George W. Bush's national campaign finance committee, said local primary
campaigns often produce more lingering resentments than statewide and national
contests because they are more intimate."All of the supporters of the candidates
know each other, and the candidates know each other and see each other around,"
Winn said. "It's probably a little bit more personal."Winn, also a co-chairman
of DeMint's U.S. Senate finance committee, said Coffey and Bright's refusal to
endorse Wright and Hawkins is not very important because the GOP nominees are
heavy favorites to win in November anyway.If Beasley had refused to support
DeMint, he said, "it would mean a lot more because the race (pitting DeMint
against Democrat Inez Tenenbaum) is closer and, in many people's eyes, more
significant."Local Republicans hope DeMint can break away from his congressional
responsibilities in Washington, D.C. to attend Thursday's Unity Rally. Beltram
said previous commitments will keep Hawkins and U.S. House candidate Bob Inglis
away, but he said Wright will be there "front and center."Wright said he is
disappointed not to have Coffey's support, "but we'll press forward and do our
best."Hawkins called Bright's refusal to endorse him "unfortunate.""Losing is
hard," the veteran legislator said. "It's time for us to come together as
Republicans and put all this behind us."The race is over. It's over."Tom
Langhorne can be reached at 562-7215 or at tom.langhorne@shj.com.