By Catherine Matacic
Capital News Service
Friday, Sept. 13, 2002

WASHINGTON - Breaking up is hard to do, but making up is proving even harder for some rank-and-file Democrats.

Just days after a bruising five-way primary for the 8th District nomination, some volunteers for the losing campaigns were finding it hard to kiss and make up with Democratic nominee Christopher Van Hollen, as their candidates and party leaders have urged.  

"A lot of people are still getting over the fact that we lost," said Rick Abbruzzese, a campaign spokesman for Democratic challenger Mark Shriver.

One of those people was teacher Stu Eisenman, who spent much of the summer campaigning for Shriver. He called Shriver's loss to Van Hollen "heartbreaking."  

Even though he doesn't want to see Rep. Connie Morella, R-Bethesda, returned to office, Eisenman said Thursday he cannot bring himself to volunteer for Van Hollen, or even vote for him.

But others were coming around to the fact that, as WTOP political analyst  Mark Plotkin put it, "There's gonna have to be some kiss and make up."

Rockville attorney Brad Koplinski, who was working on Shriver's campaign until Wednesday, said he is now volunteering for Van Hollen, who got 43.5 percent of the primary vote to Shriver's 40.5 percent.

"I was waiting really for the shakedown of who was going to emerge from this. My overriding concern is getting a Democrat on that seat," he said.

Koplinski said Shriver supporters will probably vote for Van Hollen, but  he could not predict how much they would do besides "pull the lever for him over Connie."

"It's really the workers in the trenches who are the real dedicated ones. It's unclear whether they'll support the ... nominee," he said.  

Van Hollen spokesman Afshin Mohamadi said that about 100 former volunteers for Shriver and challenger Ira Shapiro have called to offer help since the primary. So far, though, none of the Democratic candidates have made plans to mobilize volunteers for Van Hollen.   

Shriver has sent out 7,000 letters encouraging his supporters to back his former rival, and he is trying to get the unions that endorsed him to do the same now for Van Hollen.  

Abbruzzese said environmental and gun control groups will probably be fast to swing to Van Hollen, but that it might take more time for others.

"Mark had minorities working for him, people with disabilities, labor, college kids," Abbruzzese said. "It was because of him that we were all there."
 

Copyright © 2002 University of Maryland College of Journalism