Louise Gore, Force in Md. GOP, Dies

In the General Assembly, she rarely took aggressive stands on public issues and seemed uncomfortable with partisan debate, but legislators described her at the time as a quietly successful advocate for her constituents.

"She played it like a lady," a colleague once said. "It was immensely effective in lobbying with powerful committee chairmen."

Political observers partly attributed Miss Gore's upset victory over Hogan in the 1974 gubernatorial primary to her genteel, low-key nature, which carried over to her campaign.

Hogan, a member of the House Judiciary Committee at the time, alienated many Republicans -- but gained nationwide notice -- by declaring before the start of impeachment proceedings that he would vote to oust Nixon. He undertook a risky, high-profile primary campaign for governor, playing more to a general-election audience and giving less attention to Miss Gore than to the Democratic incumbent, Mandel.

By contrast, Miss Gore targeted small, select groups of Republicans, making the tea-party circuit of GOP women's clubs and withholding public comment on Nixon's imperiled presidency. She had come to admire Nixon after meeting him in the late 1950s.

She won her party's nomination but lost in a landslide to Mandel. Observes blamed the loss on her inability to meet the tougher organizational and financial demands of a general-election campaign.

In 1978, again seeking the nomination for governor, Miss Gore discovered that her traditional base of support had weakened. With more women taking full-time jobs or moving out of support roles to become candidates themselves, the strength of women's clubs had eroded. She failed to gain the backing of Maryland's GOP standard-bearers in Congress and the state legislature and lost the gubernatorial primary to Beall.

"There is absolutely nothing wrong with being defeated," Miss Gore said before the primary, acknowledging her uphill battle. "At least the public will have a choice."

Miss Gore, who lived in the District, was a second cousin to Al Gore Sr., the late Democratic senator from Tennessee and father of former vice president Al Gore.

Survivors include a brother, James Gore of Vienna.