Bad News for Gore From the Black Caucus

By TAMALA M. EDWARDS

Though AL GORE's campaign is crackling along in the general population, there are problems in some surprising places. In an internal poll of African Americans conducted by the campaign, only 45% of respondents said they were definitely going to vote. "You want to be up around 60%, 65% certain," says South Carolina Congressman JAMES CLYBURN, head of the Congressional Black Caucus. "This is not good." When Gore campaign chairman BILL DALEY and campaign manager DONNA BRAZILLE met last week with some CBC members, the conversation got heated as the black legislators argued that Gore needed to ramp up efforts with black voters--and soon. A senior aide says Gore's team is not too worried, but notes that black turnout between 1992 and 1996 fell, from 60% to 54%, a number some suspect will slide even further this year. Gore needs black turnout to be at least in the 50s, and he may have to do much of the work himself, since many blacks live in districts with Congressmen who face no opposition and are thus apt to let their political machines sleep. Such clashes are quadrennial, with blacks typically arguing that white candidates need to pay more attention to their communities. But in a race this tight, too many black no-shows on Election Day could prove costly for Gore.

--By Tamala M. Edwards