Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 2, 1992 TAG: 9201010143
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
WILDER STUDIES STRATEGY
His fund raising lagging, Gov. Douglas Wilder said Tuesday that he is assessing whether to scale back his presidential campaign in New Hampshire, the first primary state, in favor of a stronger effort in Maryland and South Carolina.In an interview, Wilder acknowledged that his advisers are split about the best strategy, and that they will be meeting on the matter later this week. In the meantime, he has asked that an alternative budget - funneling resources into Maryland and South Carolina - be drafted.
Maryland and South Carolina hold their primaries on March 3 and 7, respectively, two weeks after New Hampshire's vote on Feb. 18 and just before the March 10 "Super Tuesday" voting in several Southern states.
Wilder had said in the fall that he thought he could carry New Hampshire. He insisted Tuesday that he still could do well, despite a recent poll showing him trailing the Democratic field.
New Hampshire has almost no black voters, the group on which Wilder is concentrating most heavily.
The argument for New Hampshire "is that, symbolically, if you came in . . . third or fourth . . . it helps you," Wilder said. "The question is: How much does it help you?"
Mame Reiley, Wilder's New Hampshire coordinator, said she is fighting for Wilder to stay competitive there.
"We haven't done any direct mail or television like a lot of other campaigns," Reiley said. "I'm fighting for him to spend money here to go on TV. If he does that, there is no reason we can't finish third or fourth."
But Wilder acknowledged that he may not be able to spend heavily everywhere. Earlier, he set a goal of raising $1 million by the end of 1991.
"It's not going to be a million bucks. I can tell you that," he said, when asked Tuesday about his year-end goal.
The possible advantages of switching his focus to Maryland and South Carolina are both financial and practical, Wilder said. The states are easier to travel to, a concern as Virginia's legislature considers Wilder's budget proposals beginning next week.
Polls suggest that Wilder also has brighter prospects in Maryland and South Carolina than in New Hampshire. Both states have a substantial number of black voters, and recent polls have shown him leading among Democrats in those states.
"It's just so accessible," he said of Maryland. And, "Maryland was good to me in '89" as a source of campaign contributions in his campaign for governor.
Even if he came in last in New Hampshire, his campaign would not derail, Wilder said. Nor, he insisted, would it look like a retreat if he changed strategy. "You're finding that taking place with other candidates," he said.
But Wilder also said he still has hopes of winning an endorsement from the Manchester Union Leader, the only statewide newspaper in New Hampshire.
Keywords:
POLITICS