The member of Congress ends weeks of will-she-or-won't-she talk by taking a sideline view of the 2004 U.S. Senate race. Instead, she'll seek a second term as representative.
By TAMARA LUSH and STEVE BOUSQUET
Published January 17, 2004
[Times photo: Michael Rondou]
U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris momentarily shocked her friend, Lee-en Chung, far left, husband, Anders Ebbesn, and fellow Rep. Nancy Detert, right, when she told supporters at Sarasota's Roy McBean Boys and Girls Club that she would run for Senate. Then she playfully clarified that she would not do so in 2004.
SARASOTA - U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris managed to make both Republicans and Democrats happy Friday when she announced she will not run for Florida's open U.S. Senate seat.
Harris ended weeks of speculation and mixed signals by saying she will run for a second term in Congress.
She did so in dramatic fashion.
"After careful deliberation, I am here to announce that I am going to be a candidate for the United States Senate," said Harris, 46.
The audience, which expected just the opposite, was stunned into silence before breaking out into thunderous applause. Harris grinned.
"But," she added, "not this year."
Although polls found Harris the top choice among Republican voters, the White House feared her presence on the ballot would rekindle memories of her role in the 2000 presidential recount and inspire Democrats to work against her.
At Lake Buena Vista near Orlando, other Senate candidates were wrapping up a two-hour forum before the Florida Association of Realtors when they heard about Harris' decision.
Republican Mel Martinez grinned.
"I think it does allow our party to coalesce around my candidacy," said Martinez, who added he would be delighted if Harris endorsed him.
The White House is said to be quietly backing Martinez, the Bush housing secretary who resigned last month, though Gov. Jeb Bush and a White House aide insist the president is staying out of it.
Democratic Senate candidate Betty Castor of Tampa also was pleased by Harris' decision.
"I think there's an advantage for me, obviously, in being the only female in the race," said Castor, who used the prospect of a Harris candidacy to raise money.
Harris is the third candidate to take a pass on the seat, after Republican Mark Foley and Democrat Bob Graham, who is retiring from the Senate after three terms.
Still running are seven Republicans and three Democrats. Six of them were in Orlando for the first major forum of the campaign, organized by the Realtor group. Former Republican U.S. Rep. Bill McCollum, the GOP's unsuccessful nominee in 2000, stressed his knowledge of the terrorism threat and his experience as a 20-year member of Congress. "I don't need on-the-job training," McCollum said in an apparent reference to Martinez.
Martinez, like McCollum, enthusiastically backed President Bush's tax cuts and talked of "pushing the president's agenda."
Republican state Sen. Dan Webster of Winter Garden recalled running "as a nobody" for the state House in 1980 and eventually becoming Florida's first Republican House speaker in 122 years.
Republican Larry Klayman, a Miami lawyer and founder of Judicial Watch, called himself "a true Republican conservative reformer." A frequent critic of the courts, he said he favors term limits and psychological tests for judges.
Castor praised the real estate profession for opening career doors for women. She also criticized President Bush for big deficits she said will drive up interest rates and make buying homes more difficult.
Equally critical of Bush's economic policy was the other Democrat on hand, U.S. Rep. Peter Deutsch of Broward County. The self-described "New Democrat" endorsed several issues of interest to the Realtors, such as reducing the capital gains tax.
Four Senate candidates were absent: Republicans Johnnie Byrd, Barbara Sheen Todd and Bob Smith and Democrat Alex Penelas.
But the day belonged largely to the candidate who wasn't, Katherine Harris.
Her role in certifying the presidential election for George W. Bush made Harris such a household name that merely announcing she would make a decision was national news.
Harris made her announcement before an eclectic mix of people - wealthy women carrying Prada bags sat next to teenagers from the Boys and Girls Club. Firefighters, developers, veterans and Harris' husband stood beside her.
Harris said she wants to continue her work in Congress, help Republicans win the Senate seat and help re-elect President Bush.
"I came to Washington to do something, not be something," Harris said. "And before I apply for another job, I intend to finish the one I was hired for."
House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., praised Harris' decision.
"Throughout her career as a public servant she has been an effective leader who always puts people before politics," he said. "I am glad that she plans on continuing her service in the House."
Harris said the White House made no promises if she did not run. She said White House political adviser Karl Rove "was never discouraging."
With Harris out of the race, White House aides can continue backing Martinez while Harris, one of the nation's top GOP fundraisers, can collect political IOUs and a nationwide list of contributors for a future Senate campaign.
"My decision may disappoint those who were looking forward to a horse race and the headlines" of a Senate campaign, Harris said. "Rest assured, all in good time."
Though she did not say so, Harris appears to have set her sights on the U.S. Senate seat held by Democrat Bill Nelson, which is up in 2006.
Nelson spokesman Dan McLaughlin suggested that she would have a difficult time winning because she was not a "mainstream" candidate.
"Florida tends to pick candidates in the mainstream and then rehire or re-elect people who do a good job," McLaughlin said. "As long as Bill Nelson keeps doing his job as well as he's doing it, I would think or hope that the people of Florida in 2006 recognize that and keep him as one of their representatives."
Some voters, such as Deborah Hodo of Sarasota, were glad Harris decided to focus on her re-election.
"She said exactly what I wanted to hear," said Hodo, the chairwoman of the Hope VI Homeowners' Association in Sarasota. "We know the job is going to get done because she is going to see to it."
Others were disappointed, but buoyed by Harris' remarks about her future.
"I wanted her to go to the Senate," said Dottie McCarthy of Sarasota, a longtime friend and supporter. "But whatever she decides is fine with me.
"There's always tomorrow."
- Times staff writer Bill Adair and the Associated Press contributed to this report. Tamara Lush can be reached at 727-893-8612 or at lush@sptimes.com Steve Bousquet can be reached at bousquet@sptimes.com
