By Andrew Dys The Herald
(Published August 20‚ 2003)
Before South Carolina's Democratic presidential primary Feb. 3, political junkies at Winthrop University hope to be in the center of the nation's political storm.
The school's political science honors society has invited all nine Democratic presidential candidates and President Bush, a Republican, to participate in a debate Jan. 31.
The S.C. primary follows only the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary in the 2004 campaign calendar and is viewed as crucial to the success of any Democrat seeking the presidency.
"We're inviting everybody," said Scott Huffmon, a political science professor at Winthrop and the faculty adviser to the nonpartisan Pi Sigma Alpha society. "This would allow this community to come center stage."
Any debate so close to the Democratic primary would almost certainly lure national television, print and radio coverage, launching York County into the spotlight of national and international politics.
"I think this would be wonderful," said Rock Hill Mayor Doug Echols, calling the opportunity a "coup" for Winthrop. "We'd be able to draw national attention to Rock Hill and Winthrop University."
Huffmon said he sent the idea to the state Democratic Party in hopes of mutually coordinating the event. State Democratic Party Chairman Joe Erwin of Greenville said Tuesday that while the Winthrop idea hadn't reached him yet, any event that brings in five or more of the candidates, "would be a doable and wonderful event."
"I would not say no with the election only two or three days afterward," Erwin said.
A debate's effect on the area's image and name recognition would be invaluable, said Bennish Brown, executive director of the Rock Hill/York County Tourism and Sports Commission, which markets York County to the rest of the state and country.
"We couldn't buy an ad like that, couldn't put a value on what that exposure would mean to us," Brown said. "We would do whatever we needed to do to help package this and make it happen."
South Carolina may tilt Republican during national elections, but at least during primary season, the focus of the country will be on the Democratic race.
"We play a key role in deciding who the Demo-cratic challenger will be," Huffmon said. "A debate would put us right in the middle of the process."
Contact Andrew Dys at 329-4065 or mailto:adys@heraldonline.com Herald Assistant City Editor Jason Cato contributed to this story.
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