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It should be added that the new situation in the Democratic Party has had a ripple effect in the GOP, where former Del. Wyatt Durrette and 8th District Congressman Stanford Parkis are locked in a bitter battle for the Republican gubernatorial nod. In that race Durrette has surged ahead of Parris, who may be considering pulling out.
But the prospect that Baliles may eventually win the Democratic nomination has given Parris a glimmer of new hope. His supporters note that Baliles defeated Durrette in the race for attorney general in 1981, and they are convinced that a BalilesDurrette rematch, this time for the govemship, would have the same outcome. In fact, they believe that Baliles would be even more formidable against Durrette this time around because of his service as attorney general. Thus the Parris strategists are pursuaded, not surprisingly, that their main would be the stronger candidate against Baliles.
Indeed, it might be said that whatever chance the Parris’ campaign has of reviving itself, if it has any at all, may depend on how well the Baliles campaign prospers. As a Parris spokesman put it in the wake of the Democratic caucuses, “The whole dynamics of the campaign has changed.”
But whatever the effect of the caucuses on GOP politics, the effect on Democratic politics is the party’s most immediate concern. Unless a way can be found to get through the June convention without Baliles and Davis tearing themselves — and the party — apart, the march of either Durrette or Parris to the Governor’s Mansion will be a cakewalk.
Thus, if they are smart, both Davis and Baliles — and just as importantly their hot-eyed staffs — will recognize that the name of the game between now and June is not just winning the nomination.
If they want to win in November, it must also be an exercise in Democratic Party damage control.
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