When I last checked in with the local Democratic Party organizations (an oxymoron, I know), it was the Hillsborough executive committee that was torn with strife. Today, that divisiveness could be headed to a new home, at the Pinellas Democratic Party.
With only four months to go before the general election in November, Pinellas Democratic leaders will vote later this month for a new chairman to replace the outgoing Carrie Wadlinger. Her unexpected resignation came at a bad time for the party, as it tried to muster enough candidates and resources to be competitive with the Republican Party, which has consistently beaten it at the polls.
Wadlinger's departure has re-opened some deep ideological and strategic rifts in the local party between a progressive, no-holds-barred wing led by unsuccessful St. Petersburg mayoral candidate Ed Helm and a pragmatic, moderate wing as typified by past chairman Tom Steck. Both are running to replace Wadlinger.
Already, one candidate for chairman has dropped out of the race, citing the danger of a polarizing election. "Because the intrigue and drama has been damaging to our momentum, I decided that the best course for the Party was for me to stay in the Vice Chair position," Arlin Briley told the Planet by e-mail. "If I ran hard for it, I might win, but at a cost of a divisive race and the creation of yet another vacancy to fill (Vice Chair), bringing more unwanted drama."
Watching Democrats fight among themselves like polliwogs in a terrarium is interesting enough. But there is a lot at stake in Pinellas. It has one in five of the state's open legislative seats, including two districts that would seem to be primed for a Democratic pickup: the seats being vacated by Republicans Frank Farkas and Leslie Waters. The state party has paid for a local consultant, Kevin King, to oversee its Florida House races in Pinellas, a testament to their importance.
Pinellas, after all, has been trending Democratic in presidential elections. John Kerry was within 226 votes of George Bush in the heavily Republican Pinellas County in 2004. Al Gore carried the county in 2000. Those trends in national races have not trickled down lower on the ballot to the state legislature or county commission in Pinellas.
There is no doubt Helm is both electrifying and a lightning rod. He estranged two Democrat elected officials in his nonpartisan mayoral race when he attacked them for supporting Republican Rick Baker. He also alienated activists such as Darden Rice (Sierra Club) and Karl Nurse (Council of Neighborhood Associations) by crashing a Green Cities press conference they had arranged.
At the same time, Helm has created a strong following among progressive, MoveOn-oriented grassroots workers. Some of his followers talk about "taking back the party" from the more centrist leadership it has had over the past decade. Helm also wants to press Democratic candidacies in every available district, regardless of resources. And he vows to double or triple the number of Democratic clubs (six) in the county.
Helm is not apologetic in his zeal, but wants to make clear that victory for the party is his first goal.
"Any serious Democrat, any Democrat really, I will work with," he said last week. "We are in a transition within the party from being a social club to being an effective political organization. There are people that I don't want to socialize with that I will work with. We share a common goal — working to elect Democrats."
Helm hints at changing up the local game plan a bit, even at this late date. In a letter to members of the Pinellas Democratic Executive Committee, Helm said he would hold "orientation/strategy sessions so we can democratically decide what actions to take to elect Democrats in November."
For Steck, who has served previous terms as chairman of the local party, it is too late to reinvent strategy and direction for this election.
"At this point, to take over with four months left in the term, it is not wise under any circumstances to propose lots of changes. To come in and start spinning the wheel is counterproductive to my way of thinking," Steck said. "I'm going to try to be realistic."
Both candidates acknowledge the bad timing of the Pinellas Democratic election and its potential for division. Steck said he hopes that doesn't happen and said he'd love to have Helm's help if he wins. Helm, for his part, said the last-minute nature of the chairmanship change could actually keep the party together.
"The advantage is we don't have time to be divisive," Helm said. "We have work to do. We'll have less time to be distracted. We'll avoid the petty stuff and the personal stuff to get the job done. If we're a serious organization, we know there is a goal to accomplish. "
Given the history of the local Democratic parties, that is one mighty big If.
Political Whore can be reached by e-mail at wayne.garcia@weeklyplanet.com, by telephone at 813- 739-4805 or on our blog at www.blurbex.com.
This article appears in Jul 12-18, 2006.