Published: February 05, 2008 11:57 am      

Word of mouth key for convention delegate candidates

CUMBERLAND - James Bestpitch is not counting solely on his position on serious issues to earn him a spot to the Democratic National Convention in Denver this August.

He's also not banking only on his pledge to vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton, whom he calls a woman "ahead of her time" and "definitely a woman with vision" when it comes to national health care issues.

Instead, it's where the candidate's name falls on the list on the Feb. 12 primary election ballot.

"Mine being the first name doesn't hurt," Bestpitch said of the list of 13 male Democrats vying for a ticket to the convention to cast their vote for their preferred presidential candidate. The top three vote-getters will go, as will the top two female vote-getters.

In the Republican race, voters tally up to three choices and three alternates. Those choices are not based on gender.

For the first time, delegate candidates are not allowed to advertise as politicians do. It makes word-of-mouth awareness that much more important, candidates said.

Bestpitch is one of the Allegany County men vying for the three Democratic spots. The others are Bill Duvall, Brian Grim, Larry Kasekamp and John Riley. Allegany County has three women among nine candidates for two available slots to the Democratic National Convention. They include Terri Crawford Fuller, Cherie Krug and Janice Pacelli.

Bestpitch said he casts his support for the New York lawmaker because of lessons learned since the end of former President Bill Clinton's administration.

"If we would have listened to Hillary Clinton when Bill was in office, we wouldn't be going through the health care crisis we're going through right now," said Bestpitch, president of the Western Maryland Central Labor Council. "If I go to the convention, I'll vote for Hillary."

Fellow Democrat Brian Grim of Cumberland thinks differently - and will cast his ballot accordingly, if elected to attend for what would be his first time.

"I believe I represent a block of voters that is underrepresented, that being voters under (the age of) 30," Grim wrote in an e-mail to the Times-News.

Grim supports Barack Obama because he believes in his "idealist message" and his "movement for change, his message of hope and his vision for a brighter, better America," Grim wrote.

As chairman of the Garrett County Republican Central Committee, Brandon Butler, 24, of Grantsville also thinks he has a handle on what younger voters want. Though chair, running for an alternate delegate seat allows him the opportunity to focus on his personal favorites.

Butler originally threw his support toward Fred Thompson, who recently withdrew from the presidential race. He chose Thompson because "he was a very reasonable man, incredibly smart and also brought a lot to the table," Butler said. "I thought others were lacking in a conservative voice."

Now, however, he's leaning toward former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. At this point, however, his vote might not be his own. It's up to Thompson whether he releases his delegates from their original pledge and allows them to vote for their candidate of choice or he orders them to support Romney, Mike Huckabee or John McCain. As of Monday afternoon, Thompson hadn't endorsed another candidate.

"For me, it comes down to the economy," Butler said. "The guy that's really showing the business acumen is Romney right now. I think that's what the general election's going to be all about."

Jeff Bailey, who supports Huckabee, is the only other area candidate for a delegate alternate.

Brenda Butscher of Mountain Lake Park is one of 23 candidates hoping to fill one of three slots to the Republican Convention in September in St. Paul, Minn. The only other area candidate is Frank Nethken of Cumberland.

Like Butler, Butscher has vowed to support Romney based on his economic strengths. She also likes that Romney isn't "a political insider."

Romney is "a new face on the national scene," said Butscher, a Maryland political activist since 1965. This would be Butscher's 11th national convention, if elected.

Butscher has a pretty good track record of picking the winning candidate. Her favored candidate has gone on to win her party's nomination each time she voted, although not always in the general election.

Contact Kevin Spradlin at kspradlin@times-news.com.