Moore, Sanford supporters cross party lines

JIM DAVENPORT

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. - This year's gubernatorial race has some people ignoring party ties and lending their names and financial support to candidates in "the other party."

Gov. Mark Sanford's campaign manager release a list of a dozen leaders of the "Democrats for Sanford" coalition that includes Eastover Mayor Chris Campbell, head of the South Carolina Conference of Black Mayors, and Dell Isham, executive director of the Sierra Club's South Carolina chapter.

Sanford said he was glad they "decided to put party politics aside and join our cause."

In the news release, Campbell said Sanford will "keep standing up to the folks in Columbia who want everything to stay the same, no matter how many times they try to knock him down. I can respect that."

Tanya Faison, who owns a Florence day care facility, is helping Sanford's campaign. She said she was worried about the community her child would grow up in.

"My 13-year old should have the same opportunities as every other child in South Carolina, and I think that Mark Sanford feels the same way," Faison said in the news release.

But state Sen. Tommy Moore, D-Clearwater, appears to be drawing his own crossover group that includes well known Republicans and their donations.

Lyman Whitehead, former chairman of the Lexington County Republican Party, said his group is filing paperwork with the state Ethics Commission to raise money for Moore and plans its first major fundraiser Monday.

Whitehead is on the Lexington Medical Center board, a group stung earlier this year by Sanford's veto of a bill that would have let the hospital open a heart center. That veto riled voters in the Republican stronghold county and was another sign that Sanford "doesn't get along with anybody," Whitehead said.

Horry County Auditor Lois Eargle endorsed Sanford's primary opponent, Oscar Lovelace. On Thursday, the former county GOP chairwoman helped lead a group of 300 that raised $115,000 for Moore. "The strangest thing was we had just as many Republicans as we did Democrats," Eargle said.

Sanford has divided Republicans, she said. "He's not a true Republican," she said. "If he were, he'd do something about building the party."

The former Republican county chairmen joining Moore's campaign is significant, particularly in terms of money, Winthrop University political science professor Scott Huffmon said. But, he added, it's not clear whether that support will translate into votes.

The statewide kickoff of Republicans for Moore is expected next week, organizer George Shissias said. Huffmon said he was not surprised the group began after Sanford's worse-than-expected showing against Lovelace - a poorly financed political newcomer.

That means the governor had little choice but to find some Democrats supporting his campaign, Huffmon said.