State: Teachers union endorses McBride

TALLAHASSEE -- Janet Reno's early status as the presumptive Democratic nominee for governor took a hit Thursday as the state's largest teachers union endorsed Tampa lawyer Bill McBride.

"What this says about Janet Reno is that mainstream Democrats fear that she can't beat Jeb Bush," said Susan MacManus, a University of South Florida political science professor. "It's a big burst of fresh air that McBride's been needing for a long time."

The 122,000-member Florida Education Association can provide an army of activists and volunteers for Democratic candidates. What is more significant, its endorsement raises McBride's statewide profile and highlights the doubts some party faithful have about Reno's ability to beat Bush.

Reno sought the endorsement but shrugged it off Thursday. Florida's teachers will back her once she wins the party nomination in September, she said.

"Right now I have by far and away the best chance to beat Jeb Bush," she said. "In the general election I can inspire people to vote."

McBride and Reno sound virtually identical when talking about education on the campaign trail. In interviews with the teachers union, though, FEA president Maureen Dinnen said McBride showed "the better vision and a stronger commitment. . . . When he talks about education, his knowledge is deep. He's done his reading. He's done his homework."

Though their positions on issues were paramount, Dinnen said electability also was a factor.

"They want someone who will win," she said of union members.

That's a recurring sentiment among Democrats worried that Reno lacks the broad appeal to win many votes outside the Democratic strongholds of South Florida. The FEA took a statewide poll of Florida voters in October and found Bush leading Reno by more than a 2-1 ratio, 60 percent to 26 percent.

"We have to have candidates that are not only good on our issues, but will appeal to the center core of Florida voters," said Jade Moore, executive director of the Pinellas Classroom Teachers Association, which has a McBride fundraiser scheduled. "We love Janet Reno. She is a great person. But . . . it will be very difficult for her to get elected."

McBride, the former CEO of Florida's largest law firm, contends that he offers that broad appeal. As a decorated Vietnam veteran and business leader, he says he can attract crucial swing voters in Central and North Florida, along with traditional Democrats. He also has received other, lower-profile labor recommendations.

Although McBride has raised more money than Reno, he remains a serious long shot. The Republican-controlled Legislature changed the primary system so that whoever wins the most votes wins the nomination. Reno has the name recognition of a Washington celebrity, while McBride has never run for any public office and is unknown through most of Florida. State Rep. Lois Frankel of West Palm Beach and state Sen. Daryl Jones of Miami also are seeking the Democratic nomination.

The teachers' endorsement gives McBride "a little more heft and weight in the primary, so maybe it won't be a total runaway for Janet Reno," said Aubrey Jewett, a political scientist at the University of Central Florida.

At a Tallahassee news conference with FEA, McBride said the endorsement was the one he wanted most. His top priority as governor would be to create a "bustling and robust economy. And the first place to start is education."

McBride and his wife, Alex Sink, the former Florida head of NationsBank, live outside Tampa and send their two children to public schools. He supports Sen. Bob Graham's referendum campaign to re-establish the Board of Regents, which Bush replaced with separate trustee boards at 11 universities. As governor, he also says he would abolish Bush's system of grading schools and rewarding those that improve.

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Lucy Morgan

From the Times state desk