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  • 标题:KERRY: MUST TRY HARDER; THE DEMOCRATS; Claire Prentice reports from
  • 作者:Claire Prentice
  • 期刊名称:The Sunday Herald
  • 印刷版ISSN:1465-8771
  • 出版年度:2004
  • 卷号:Nov 7, 2004
  • 出版社:Newsquest (Herald and Times) Ltd.

KERRY: MUST TRY HARDER; THE DEMOCRATS; Claire Prentice reports from

Claire Prentice

On Tuesday night, John Kerry's supporters were in party mood as they thronged into Boston's Copley Plaza for a victory rally. With Pennsylvania in the bag, the crowd awaited the results in Ohio and Florida, which would usher in America's new Democratic presidency.

Just 12 hours later, the mood was almost funereal, as thousands gathered outside Boston's historic Faneuil Hall to hear John Kerry concede an unexpected defeat. A choked and emotional Kerry, very different from the often stilted figure who had appeared on the stump, offered his supporters some comfort:

"I wish I could just wrap you in my arms and embrace each and every one of you individually all across this nation," he said.

Many in the room broke down in tears. Some could not accept the result. As Kerry came outside to deafening applause, a group of protesters urged him to "count every vote. No surrender, no defeat." One placard asked simply: "Where do we go from here?"

It is a question which the Democratic Party are asking themselves as they struggle to come to terms with a defeat which has shocked them to the core. For the death of Kerry's political hopes has also revealed a crisis at the heart of America's opposition party.

Though the party have deep roots in the liberal northeast, they have struggled to put together a winning coalition across the country. Like the British Labour party after their unexpected defeat in 1992, the Democrats are willing to change their deepest beliefs in order to re-engage with the electorate, though it is hard to see who their Tony Blair figure is likely to be.

As the party analyses what went wrong, few are blaming Kerry, who, despite a confused start, put in a spirited performance. Tuesday's defeat was not just a rejection of the name on the Presidential ballot.

Voters punished Democrats in the Senate, Congress and in local political offices from the midwest to the south. To have any chance of securing the Presidency in 2008 the party needs to re-engage with soccer moms, suburban and rural voters and Christians, who emerged in this election as George Bush's shock troops.

Centrists are criticising Kerry for straying too far from mainstream politics and traditional values with his criticism of the war in Iraq and his pro-abortion, pro-gay stance.

"The Democratic Party needs to broaden their base. They need to reach out to both sides without straying too far from the centre," said Robert Strauss, Democratic adviser to Presidents going back to Lyndon Johnson.

Others believe the party's traditional coalition between blue collar and patrician interests is exactly what has failed them.

"Democrats get in trouble with candidates from the liberal elite, of noblesse oblige, who talk about going to help the poor people," said Democrat strategist David Doak.

"Bill Clinton could go both ways. He was comfortable in trailer parks as well as Park Avenue, but he was a unique figure. We Democrats have got to find a way to reconnect with rural voters and more conservative voters."

The other key to a Democrat victory is the south. Early in his campaign, Kerry drew fire when he said the Democrats could win the White House without it. In the past 28 years, only Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton have taken the world's top job for the Democrats and both had support in the south and among evangelicals.

Candidates for 2008 are already jostling for position. With his southern drawl and high likeability rating, Edwards might seem like an obvious choice. But the trial lawyer failed to deliver either of the Carolinas to the party despite being born in the south and representing the north in the Senate. In terms of name recognition and star power, Hillary Rodham Clinton is unrivalled. She has also built up an impressive reputation as a skilled politician in the Senate. But, despite the years she spent in Arkansas, as a liberal senator from a northeastern state, she could follow the same fate as Kerry. She is also the most divisive Democratic figure in the country.

One of few Democrats to steal a seat from the Republicans, Illinois new African-American senator Barack Obama is being tipped as a future President. He successfully speaks the language of morality, but few think he, or America, will be ready for his Presidency by 2008. David King, associate director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University, said: "There is no heir apparent. The party needs to look in the mirror and understand that the American public is not necessarily looking for policies and programmes but for leadership, vision and a sense of community."

Copyright 2004 SMG Sunday Newspapers Ltd.
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.

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