Female candidates keep pushing toward top

Female candidates keep pushing toward top

By KEVIN LANDRIGAN Staff Writer
klandrigan@nashuatelegraph.com

NASHUA – Former radio talk show host Jennifer Horn owes more than the star quality of Republican running mate Sarah Palin for a historic win as the first GOP female New Hampshire nominee for federal office, insiders agreed Wednesday.

But many concede it sure didn't hurt.

Both women are 45, mothers of five and, to establish their political bona fides, both won Republican primaries over veteran party leaders on a mantra of change.

During an interview Wednesday, Horn recalled her instant reaction hearing John McCain's stunning pick of Palin, governor of Alaska, as his running mate 10 days before New Hampshire's primary vote.

"When it was announced, my first reaction was how exciting this all was," Horn said. "Honestly, it wasn't until someone on my campaign told me that this could bring me a boost that I thought about it.

"There are some obvious parallels."

Horn, a Nashua resident, picked up the parallels quickly, talking up Palin in the only televised debate of the four GOP candidates in the 2nd District a week ago.

At the time, she was spotted shooting a stern look at primary rival Grant Bosse, of Hillsboro, who reminded viewers Palin had far more political experience than Horn, a first-time candidate for any office.

Meanwhile, in the other major party, former Democratic Gov. Jeanne Shaheen seeks to become the first New Hampshire woman elected to the Senate, and U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter, a Democrat, hopes to be the first female congressional incumbent from this state to survive re-election Nov. 4.Shaheen skipped Horn's own feat but remarked on the milestones of 2008 Wednesday, topped by Barack Obama seeking to become the first African-American elected President.

"Throughout this election cycle, there has been a lot of talk about history," Shaheen said leaving out her other distinction as the first woman elected New Hamshire governor in 1996.

"But while this race may be historic, make no mistake, it's about the future. It is about a very clear choice: Do we like the way things are going now, or do we need a new direction?''

Ironically, that's similar to Horn's message that Washington is broken and why she claims it's time to "fire'' first-term Congressman Paul Hodes.

Today, Democratic women wield the gavel in the state House of Representatives and Senate, nine years after Republican Donna Sytek was the first female House speaker and Beverly Hollingworth the first Democratic woman elected Senate president.

All of this begs the question whether a steady, upward trajectory for women in New Hampshire politics can help Horn score what would be a big upset victory over Hodes.

University of New Hampshire's Dante Scala said it's a fallacy to think female swing voters could gravitate to Shaheen and then to Horn, who hold widely divergent views on social issues.

"For example, I think it's going to be very difficult for Jennifer Horn to appeal to women who are independents, since they are after all, by a large majority, pro-choice and she is pro-life," Scala said.

Ironically, a national expert on women in elective politics, Professor Dennis Simon at Southern Methodist University, said Horn needs to embrace any policy breaks she has with Hodes based on the past track record of Republican women seeking federal office.

"In swing states, we have often seen if the choice is between a Democrat and a quasi-Democrat, then general election voters will choose the Democrat," said Simon, co-author with Barbara Palmer of "Breaking the Political Glass Ceiling." which is in its second edition.

"I think her shot is she has to draw defining contrasts with Paul Hodes, even if they are on issues that on their own could work against her like abortion," Simon said.

This is because research shows that regardless of party, the first impulse voters have is to assume the woman running is more liberal than the male, Simon continued.

"Republican women tend to do well in suburban districts around cities and in pockets of New England like Maine and the Midwest," Simon explained.

"The other place, of course, is in districts that clearly trend Republican, anyway, like the seat retiring congresswoman Deborah Price has held for so long in Columbus, Ohio," he said. "New Hampshire doesn't fit either description."

Bosse said Palin's story resonated because Horn stressed the challenges of balancing work and raising a family from the outset, seven months before McCain chose his running mate.

"In a close election, everything matters. If John McCain picks a former radio reporter who worked on a senator's staff than I'd have gotten a bump from it," Bosse quipped, alluding to his own background. "This worked for Jennifer precisely because it was her message from day one."

Last year, Donnalee Lozeau became the first woman elected mayor of Nashua and was neutral in this primary due to her long friendship with state Sen. Robert Clegg, R-Hudson.

She said Horn's self-portrayal as a political outsider against the veteran lawmaker Clegg was more powerful than her gender.

"This goes far beyond gender. It's easy for people to write this off and ask are people ready for a girl," Lozeau said. "The single most important statement she made is I'm not a politician. Sometimes it is about timing and voters this year are searching for a new approach."

Scala agreed.

"This was less about breaking the glass ceiling than it was breaking the ceiling set by the political establishment," Scala said.

Hodes was recovering from kidney stone surgery and unavailable for comment. Mark Bergmann, his spokesman, dismissed the Palin factor in this general election showdown.

"Congressman Hodes knows that this election is going to be decided between he and Jennifer Horn," Bergmann responded. "General elections are won with local candidates speaking to issues people in New Hampshire care about."

For his part, Clegg said during a telephone interview he had no regrets in failing to aggressively answer Horn's image of him as a political insider or as Bosse charged that she was a raw rookie candidate whose views on key issues changed over time.

"I can sleep fine at night and still believe I had the best group of supporters anyone would have," said Clegg, who has not decided whether he'll endorse Horn.

Kevin Landrigan can be reached at 224-8804 or klandrigan@nashuatelegraph.com.