Posted on 08/28/2005 9:33:18 AM PDT by aomagrat
The South Carolina Democratic Party is in a sorry fix, and it might take decades to repair.
Inez Tenenbaum’s decision not to seek re-election in 2006 as state superintendent of education shocked the party, left it gasping for air.
Experts stop short of declaring the party dead, but they don’t hold out much hope for recovery any time soon.
“The outlook certainly is not bright,” says College of Charleston political scientist Bill Moore.
When one looks down the road, things don’t look that promising for the Democrats. They have no reserves. In fact, they have no starting lineup to speak of. The bench is empty. And they have no star. Tenenbaum was it.
This certainly bodes ill for the party as it gears up for the 2006 and 2008 elections. Somehow, some way S.C. Democrats need to be perceived as winners again.
Until that happens, the Democrats are going to have a difficult time recruiting quality candidates to run for office.
State Democratic Party chairman Joe Erwin has proposed rebuilding the party from the bottom up by concentrating on winning smaller victories at the grass-roots level, like county councils and local school boards.
“That’s a long process, but it’s not impossible,” says Francis Marion University professor Neal Thigpen, a Republican activist.
Democrats start this election cycle with one hand tied behind their backs. The latest campaign reports showed the state party nearly $48,000 in debt and fighting to stay alive.
Some leaders fear the Democrats might not be able to field a complete ticket in 2006. Right now, with Tenenbaum bowing out of the race, State Treasurer Grady Patterson, 81, is the only Democrat in a constitutional office running for another term.
Granted, Patterson has a low-profile job among the state’s constitutional offices. But if he is the only Democrat to win statewide election, that will be enough to earn him the title of titular head of the Democratic Party.
That sends shivers through some of younger party members who are interested in attracting new blood.
Right now, one would have to say the South Carolina Democratic Party is in full retreat.
Tenenbaum was not just the top Democrat. She was the only one with any chance of pulling off a high-profile statewide victory and giving the party the psychological lift it needs.
“She was the shining light for the Democratic Party over the last few years,” Moore says.
The Democratic Party has had a difficult time recruiting candidates to run for statewide office primarily because its candidates have been unsuccessful at the ballot box. The last Democrat to run for governor and win was Jim Hodges in 1998. And Democrats — including Tenenbaum in 2004 — were unable to win or even come close in the last two U.S. Senate contests.
The Democrats may have to rely on a misstep by Republicans for any breakthrough next year. That’s always a possibility. Who knows what can happen between now and Election Day 2006?
The GOP is having its own problems and internal conflicts.
Gov. Mark Sanford and the Republican-controlled General Assembly don’t like each other. Many leaders in the business community have soured on the governor, and some GOP members are threatening to wage a challenge against Sanford in the primary next year.
But Democrats can’t sit back and count on the GOP to fumble the ball back to them. Republicans have a way of uniting when it counts.
"It seems like Ken Blackwell, is a excellent choice"
I live in California, so my only exposure to Ken Blackwall was during the presidential election bruhaha, but he seemed like a stand-up guy who would probably be great. Much better than what Ohio has now. (Like I have any basis to talk - Boxer, DiFi, Waters, Lee, Pelosi, etc.)
Ping!
So much for the famed "Dixie Chick". Last year, the media bragged about how RATS will rise again in the South by recruiting educated, white Southern women to run for office. Jim DeMint, despite a horrible debate performance on Meet The Press, still won by 10 points. It goes to show the GOP strength in South Carolina. With the state becoming a mono-party state, hopefully African-Americans will stop wasting their votes on RATS and give Republicans another look.
Probably didn't want to run for reelection because after being a low-profile liberal prior to the Senate contest, she'd be highly vulnerable to any decent GOP challenger "illuminating" her record.
It also still remains, however, that the GOP is doing an exceptionally poor job in the state with African-Americans. The 'Rats may be down and out at the moment, but all they need is to merely attract a small percentage of White voters to win statewide contests, while the GOP has to rely completely on a supermajority of Whites. This does not benefit the GOP whatsoever (and certainly doesn't benefit Blacks as long as the 'Rats are shut out). Outreach has to be a top priority for the GOP. We get to at least 25-30% of the Black vote (my personal goal is to see at least 60%), and the Dems will be shut out for perpetuity.
I hope the SC rhinos will reconsider their war against Sanford. A lot of them are upset about their "business as usual" being unusual. Some of them are very respected "republicans" who have invested in Depends undergarments lately. Most of us dont' care what you call yourselves. If you're a liar and a thief when the sun comes up, then usually you're a liar and thief when the sun goes down. South Carolinians don't have a whole lot in common with the republican party. The RNC has become a big business just like the NRA and NAACP.
Apparently she's no fool. She took a pretty good ass kicking last time, and it looks like she's smart enough to shy away from another one next year. Look, like in Florida and Georgia, the rat party in South Carolina is dead. It is a thing of the past. Period.
We'll mourn for you. hehehe :D
The SC Dem Party is going to decline before it makes any moves upward. It would take a landslide, like 1974, for the 'Rats to be competitive in SC again. All they can do is hope the price of gas rises through the roof again.
Excellent point. Republicans are beginning to reach out to Democrats, but they have a long way to go. A victory by Michael Steele in Maryland wouldn't hurt.
Thanks for your sympathy! We need it out here in DUmmieland on the West Coast.
A Steele victory, while a sweet victory for us nationwide, still will have little bearing on SC. The outreach has to be right down to the precinct level, and that's where the party has a lot of work to do in the state (and in others). Even doing something as audacious as asking them for their vote is a positive step.
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