RACE FOR THE PRESIDENCY As campaign nears end, Kerry turns to blacks

Kerry was criticized for not putting together a more diverse group of advisers.
LOS ANGELES TIMES
CLEVELAND -- After spending much of the spring and summer courting swing voters, Sen. John F. Kerry is hurriedly trying to rev up enthusiasm among blacks, turning his attention to a stalwart Democratic constituency that some community leaders complain he neglected for too long.
In the past two weeks, Kerry has tapped the Rev. Jesse Jackson as a senior adviser, hosted a summit of black clergy in Philadelphia and visited black churches in Cleveland and Miami, joined by Jackson and the Rev. Al Sharpton, a onetime rival for the Democratic presidential nomination.
During his final debate with President Bush on Wednesday, Kerry spotlighted the high unemployment rate among black men and the large proportion of black students who drop out of high school. He's set to campaign today with members of the Congressional Black Caucus and celebrities such as actress Alfre Woodard.
Kerry's running mate, North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, arrived in Florida on Saturday and plans to appeal for votes in cities with large black populations, including Daytona Beach, Gainesville and Tallahassee.
What's behind the effort
Kerry's newfound focus on the group is more than October's traditional get-out-the-vote effort. It comes amid signs that many blacks remain ambivalent about the Democratic candidate, despite their antipathy toward Bush and ongoing anger about the contested 2000 presidential election in which the ballots of hundreds of thousands of black voters were disqualified.
Republicans concede that they have no hope of winning the black vote -- four years ago, Bush's share of that segment of the electorate was about 9 percent. But Democrats probably need a high turnout of black voters to boost their prospects in key states, such as Ohio. In 2000, Bush won the state by 166,735 votes, while nearly 100,000 blacks who were registered to vote here did not go to the polls.
GOP consultant Eddie Mahe said Kerry's ability to get blacks and other minorities in Midwestern cities to support him could decide the election.
"If they turn out the minority vote in half a dozen cities, it gets very difficult to see how we win," Mahe said. "That to me is the scariest thing in this race." Although there are reports of dramatic increases in voter registration among blacks, polls indicate many remain lukewarm about Kerry. Two surveys taken by The Washington Post and ABC News in September showed that while nearly 80 percent of black respondents said they planned to vote for Kerry, less than half of those considered themselves "very enthusiastic" about his candidacy.
Speaking out
That tepidness was articulated by more than a dozen black voters who were interviewed in Cleveland this week. Kerry, they said, has not communicated a concrete agenda for improving housing, creating jobs or fighting poverty. Others simply said they don't sense a connection with the Massachusetts senator.
"I'm just not feeling it," said Laura Goodrum, 45, as she ran errands at a shopping mall in Glenville, a predominantly black neighborhood on the city's east side. "I think that Kerry would do the job better, but not much."
Stanley Tolliver, a longtime Cleveland civil-rights activist and local radio host, said callers to his weekly show often brim with anger at Bush but don't show the same level of passion about his challenger.
"They're not necessarily in love with Kerry, but it's between the two, and we don't have a choice," he said. "We certainly can't vote for Bush."
The president's re-election campaign has made some efforts to improve its support within the black community. Since early this year, Bush officials have aggressively courted black ministers, setting up meetings in Midwestern cities to stress the president's opposition to gay marriage and abortion. Many have been invited to the White House for similar gatherings. The campaign also hosted a "First Ladies Summit" in the winter, inviting dozens of pastors' wives to Washington to stress Bush's religious values.
"We have a record that resonates," said Robert Traynham, an adviser to the Republican National Committee. "That's the main reason you see the Democrats playing defense now."
Comparison to Clinton
Some Democrats privately admit the GOP has made inroads. Democratic supporters say Kerry is suffering from comparisons to Bill Clinton, a man who author Toni Morrison famously referred to as the "first black president" because of his ability to connect with black Americans.
Not only does Kerry lack Clinton's personal charisma, but he is not as fluent as the former Arkansas governor at campaigning in black communities. In his home state of Massachusetts, the black population hovers around 5 percent.
"Clinton was comfortable around black people," said Ron Edwards, 40, the owner of a Cleveland painting company, as he stopped for lunch at a local Popeye's restaurant on a recent afternoon. "I think intellectually, Kerry is, but emotionally, I'm not so sure that he's that comfortable."
Supporters say that while the senator may not be able to charm voters, he can build support among blacks by stressing that he shares their priorities.
"They don't have to like John Kerry as much as they have to understand that they need John Kerry and the Democrats in office to change the current dynamics," said Donna Brazile, who ran Al Gore's presidential campaign in 2000.
Had been criticized
Until recently, courting blacks had not been a focus of Kerry's presidential bid. In the spring, Brazile and others criticized his campaign for failing to assemble a more diverse group of advisers. And in July, members of the Congressional Black Caucus disparaged campaign commercials aimed at blacks as flat and ineffective.
Aside from requisite appearances before groups such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Urban League and occasional stops at black churches, the candidate himself has not regularly appealed to black voters, rarely addressing affirmative action, poverty or housing on the campaign trail.
Instead, he told the Los Angeles Times in July that he planned to reach out to conservatives and "people on the right," adding that he expected Democratic constituency groups would back him based on his record.
Lately, that's changed.
Last week, Kerry touted his support for affirmative action in a 20-minute interview with Black Entertainment Television. His campaign also unveiled a high-profile team of legal experts to protect voting rights, hoping to reassure blacks who fear being disenfranchised.
Personal pitch
The candidate also made a personal pitch to more than 50 black clergy members from around the Midwest who were invited by the campaign to a meeting in Philadelphia.
"I want to begin by saying to each and every one of you, these aren't new words for me, these aren't new feelings for me," Kerry told them. "These are the beliefs and the values and the principles and the causes that I have championed for 35 years or more, since I first became involved in public life."
He was received with polite applause.
Jackson, who is campaigning full time for Kerry, said that while he thought the campaign was "a bit slow early on ... they're picking up steam."
"Black voters are going to vote for this ticket because we vote for our interests," he said.