Democrats say primary shows strength

COLUMBIA -- Democratic state legislators had a little extra bounce in their step on Wednesday.

Buoyed by the success of Tuesday's presidential primary, the Democrats looked to the future with newfound confidence.

"The high turnout Tuesday (280,431 voters) proves that we've come back a long way," said Sen. Kay Patterson, D-Columbia. "I hope we can continue to come back."

Patterson said the Democrats could make a run at regaining control of the Senate in November, but that it will be tough.

"First of all, we never lost control," Patterson said. "White Democrats gave them control when they jumped ship. It's hard to take it back when so many who ran as Democrats and won as Democrats jumped to the other side, but we've got a shot."

Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston, was even more outspoken.

He said many Republicans whose parents were Democrats want to come back to the party. And they will return, he said, but only if North Carolina Sen. John Edwards wins the presidential nomination.

"People in South Carolina aren't going to vote for a Northeastern liberal (John Kerry)," Ford said. "If Kerry wins the nomination we'll lose five more seats in the (state) Senate and 11 in the House. But if Edwards gets the nomination, we can destroy the Republican Party in the South as we know it."

Not so fast, said Luke Byars, a spokesman for the state Republican Party.

"Reports of the Republican Party's demise are extraordinarily exaggerated," Byars said. "From our standpoint the turnout for the primary was not impressive and we feel very confident for November."

Byars pointed to the party's growth in the state since the 1992 primary, when 146,000 Republicans cast ballots. The Democrats also held a primary that year, with 110,000 people voting.

In the 2000 Republican presidential primary, more than 575,000 people voted, with 305,000 favoring President George W. Bush.

"And we've only expanded since then," Byars said. "For them to even suggest that the 280,000 votes that they got puts them on the same footing with us is very disingenuous.

"We believe that John Edwards' victory Tuesday is the last victory Democrats will have in South Carolina for quite some time."

State Democratic Party Chairman Joe Erwin of Greenville was just as energized as Patterson and Ford, but more reserved in his comments. He acknowledged that the Republicans still have the lead in terms of numbers.

"But for the first time in years we're growing again," Erwin said. "And as I've told every man and woman that I've met for months, the primary is not the finish line. It's the starting line for becoming a well-organized party again with a positive message."

Erwin said the mission now is to use the enthusiasm generated by the primary to recruit viable candidates to challenge Republicans across the state.

"The rush of adrenalin will end, but lets use it to go compete," Erwin said. "If you don't go up to the plate and swing, you're never going to get a hit."

One place Erwin especially wants to compete is the 4th Congressional District, where Jim DeMint is giving up his seat to run for Senate.

"It's been a tough place for us to compete," Erwin said. "But I'd like to see us have three or four candidates and have a primary. Then maybe we can surprise somebody. And that's exactly what it would be the first couple of times, a surprise."

Robert W. Dalton can be reached at 562-7223 or bob.dalton@shj.com.

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STEVEN SENNE
Presidential hopeful Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., addresses a crowd during a campaign stop Wednesday in Norfolk, Va.

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