Md., Va., D.C. Seek Strength in Numbers After Super Tuesday

The Washington region's history in presidential primary politics is found mainly in the footnotes.

It was 1988 before Virginia departed from its tradition of caucuses and mass meetings to hold primaries. Maryland might be best known as a state that Democrat George Wallace won in 1972 after he was shot at a Laurel shopping center by Arthur Bremer.

District Democrats, looking to call attention to the city's lack of congressional representation, held their 2004 primary in mid-January, ahead of Iowa and New Hampshire. But the results were nonbinding, and few of the top candidates were on the ballot.

This year, for the first time, the District, Maryland and Virginia hope to accomplish collectively what they have been unable to separately: become players in the selection of Democratic and Republican nominees. On Feb. 12, 1.5 million to 2 million voters could turn out to award 358 delegates (239 Democratic and 119 Republican) to candidates in what amounts to the Potomac Primary.

"Voters in these jurisdictions are going to have a chance to be very influential in terms of delegates," said Terry Lierman, former chairman of the Maryland Democratic Party. "The road to the White House runs through the mid-Atlantic primary."

This afternoon, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is scheduled to speak at a rally at American University. Former president Bill Clinton is expected to appear tonight at a fundraiser on behalf of his wife at the home of a Chevy Chase supporter.

States routinely jockey for more prominent positions on the primary calendar, and it's more than a matter of regional vanity or bragging rights. Hotly contested, high-turnout primaries enable state parties to expand their voter lists and better assess the mood of the electorate heading into November.

Maryland's primaries had traditionally come too late to have much impact. It was Lierman, now chief of staff to House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), who angled early last year to get the state legislature to move up the March 4 contest.

Super Tuesday, on Feb. 5, was an alternative. But, Lierman said, given all the larger states in play that day, Maryland probably would still get lost in the shuffle. Lawmakers settled on Feb. 12, and Lierman then approached Virginia and District leaders about leveraging the region's potential relevance by setting a unified date.

The District initially planned to hold its 2008 primary earlier than 2004's, on Jan. 8. Lierman enlisted D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray (D) and council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), who sponsored legislation shifting it to Feb. 12. Virginia, which had decided on Feb. 12 but was contemplating an earlier date, elected to stay put, Lierman said.

With no other states holding primaries or caucuses that day, leaders in both parties are looking forward to their states playing an unprecedented role.

"Virginia could be the nail in someone's coffin," said Del. Christopher B. Saxman (R-Staunton), state co-chairman for Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).