For McBride faithful, his loss cuts deep

As his campaign workers greet him with cheers of ''Bill! Bill! Bill!'' the defeated Democrat thanks them for their efforts.

[Times photo: Toni L. Sandys] Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill McBride takes a moment to relax at his home in Thonotosassa after voting on Tuesday. When he took the stage later in a concession speech, he smiled and thanked his people, then asked them to get behind Gov. Jeb Bush. The crowd booed, and many supporters yelled, "No."

By WES ALLISON, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published November 6, 2002

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TAMPA -- By 8:20 p.m., when CNN declared Gov. Jeb Bush had won, Bill McBride 's faithful protested it was far too early. But the mood at the Marriott Westshore deflated like a popped balloon.

Although many of the 1,000 or so supporters insisted on waiting for the results from South Florida, the Democratic stronghold, McBride's staffers acknowledged he had done too poorly in Central Florida to close the gap, and some began to cry.

McBride, typically gregarious, waited anxiously in his room upstairs, alone but for a couple old friends. Downstairs in the ballroom, supporters began consoling his wife, Alex Sink, who kept smiling broadly, a drink in her hand.

She was not in the mood to brood.

"What can I say? I don't know," she said. "The reason I'm down here is so I can thank our friends and thank them for their hard work and their support of Bill."

McBride's young staffers, many of whom were working on their first campaign, looked miserable.

Their disappointment was particularly evident amid the festive trappings in the hotel ballroom -- the table-sized "McBride for Governor" cake, the patriotic bunting, the union guys in their Sunday best. The cash bar, weeping whiskey.

Campaigns, regardless of party, are fueled by passion. They demand irrational devotion, and a willingness to put one's own life on hold for the sake of another's. As hopes faded, the frustration of McBride's staff and volunteers rose with what seemed like a bitter rejection of their 16-hour days, the countless phone calls to beg for money, the resentment of spouses.

McBride waded through the packed ballroom just past 10 p.m. and was greeted with chants of "Bill! Bill! Bill!," the man of the hour until the very end. He took the stage and smiled and thanked them, then asked his people to rally behind their governor.

The crowd booed, and many sobbed. Several yelled out, "No."

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