News - Opinion

Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009

Dennis is officially attracting attention

If he hadn’t already gotten the attention of political movers and shakers north of I-10, businessman Dave Dennis, the Coast’s first serious contender for governorship in many generations, has it now.

Dennis, who hasn’t “officially” announced his candidacy, had his first organized fundraiser last week. Around 500 people showed up and together they ponied up between $400,000 to $500,000.

That’s big. While he may not have made an official announcement to the electorate, he’s certainly fired a shot over the bow of his likely opponents.

“We are extremely serious and moving forward,” Dennis said after the fundraiser. “It humbles us to see the reaction and support we have seen so far.”

Dennis is an underdog. He’ll most likely face Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant in a Republican gubernatorial primary, and possibly some others who are also well-known politicians who already hold statewide office. Bryant has name recognition that would require Dennis to spend millions, probably early in the campaigning, just to get his name out there.

But it would appear Dennis can raise those millions. He’s certainly off to a good start. I understand he has a couple more fundraisers planned for South Mississippi, and is gearing up for regions northward. There have been a passel of news columns about his candidacy in north Mississippi newspapers.

Dennis’ most likely campaign mantra already appears clear to me: He’ll bill himself as the un-candidate — the non-politician successful businessman (he’s never run for public office). He’ll try to peg Bryant, former longtime state auditor, as a career politician who lacks business management skills.

Bryant will be tough to beat. And a Coast candidate faces age-old impediments anywhere north of McHenry.

But the non-politician businessman candidate tack has worked once before in Mississippi, for one of Dennis’ friends, the late former Gov. Kirk Fordice.

Dennis was a big supporter of Fordice — the former governor in 1995 announced his re-election campaign in Dennis’ front yard. The parallels are obvious, notably their backgrounds in running large, successful construction companies and their promise to bring sound business principles to government.

Fordice was a trip. He was a gruff old guy, who wasn’t above threatening to use his fists on those who pestered him.

Dennis is not that way. He’s an erudite, easy-going guy who should do well in front of cameras.

The 2011 gubernatorial primaries and elections will be historic. Gov. Haley Barbour, who has proved to be the most powerful governor in state history, I posit, is leaving something of a vacuum. While Bryant is the obvious front-runner at this point, he’s certainly not the heir apparent.

Throughout most of the state’s history, inland and upland leaders have rallied the rural, farming and Baptist vote to ensure that most Coast candidates didn’t get out of the starting gate. Legalized casino gambling here in the early 1990s galvanized that. I think the fact that Dennis and several other Coast candidates will be making serious runs at statewide offices next go-’round marks a political paradigm shift in the Magnolia State.

Geoff Pender is the Sun Herald’s political editor.