A Political Phenomenon

Carol Moseley Braun, the Democratic candidate for Senate in Illinois, has become the woman of the year in what has been dubbed the Year of the Women in politics.

After narrowly defeating incumbent Alan Dixon in the primary last April, Braun has become a media sensation.

"The polls are very encouraging," said Laura Retzler, student coordinator for the campaign. "The latest puts Carol Moseley Braun at 54 percent and [Republican opponent] Rich Williamson at 28 percent."

According to Shea S. Riley, coordinator of Students for Braun at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, "A lot of [college students] tell me that they are voting only to vote for Carol Moseley Braun." Riley also noted that Braun's name recognition has reached an astonishing 90 percent in Illinois.

Why such overwhelming support? In addition to being in the right place at the right time last spring, her years of experience in Illinois politics and a charismatic, plain-speaking style, Braun won national celebrity because of her potential to become the first Black woman in the Senate.

Checks poured in from across the country, and a campaign that had been plagued by disorganization and lack of funds took off. Suddenly, Braun was everywhere, prompting one enthusiastic downstate Democratic committee chair to claim, "I predict that Clinton will be pulled to victory [in Illinois] by Carol Braun's coattails."

This somewhat hyperbolic claim was only affirmed by the national media. In August, Braun appeared on the front page of the New York Times embracing Clinton at a Democratic rally.

Like Clinton, she rolls through the state in her "Carolvan" bus. And like a rock star, she autographs bumperstickers. But is she more than just a celebrity?

Her down-to-earth style is usually enough to convince voters that she can take a stand. Braun strongly criticized Bush's abortion policy in an address to students at Western Illinois University: "They wanted to give you freedom to make choices in your life and yet they want to get into your bedroom and tell you whether or not you can get pregnant."

But Braun's main concerns are the Illinois and national economies. Taking a jab at Republicans, Braun says "The greatest family value is employment." She wants to rebuild Illinois' infrastructure and create a single-payer health care system.

She is also a strong advocate of education reform. Braun often cites education as the catalyst of her rise from a working class background to the Illinois General Assembly and the Cook County Recorder of Deeds.

Although Braun is not irreproachable--she delivered an uninspiring speech at the Democratic convention--her popularity seems unassailable.

Recently, her opponent, Republican Chicago attorney Rich Williamson, attempted to link her to Gus Savage--a lame-duck Illinois Representative who gained notoriety for anti-Semitic remarks.

But Braun, who is far from anti-Semitic and is in fact a strong supporter of Israel, didn't even get a chance to defend herself. Numerous local columnists, writer Studs Terkel and Senator Paul Simon leapt to her defense, lambasting Williamson's tactics.

Comparing Willamson to a "punch-drunk prize fighter who has lost every round to a better opponent," Terkel said, "it's the last round and he hasn't a ghost of a chance of winning unless he hits foul punches."