After laying low for most of the primary race, in which she had no opponent, the Republican candidate’s campaign is finally getting underway.

Jacques Rondeau, coordinator of the Schwartz campaign, didn’t join the campaign until the week after the primary. He said his first order of business has been to get the ward coordinators and precinct captains in place. Flyers posted inside the Schwartz campaign headquarters announced the "very first" volunteer meeting for Sept. 21.

Schwartz, an at-large member of D.C. City Council making her third try for the mayor’s office, said she learned from previous elections to lay low during the primary, conserving energy and resources for the general election. Except for appearances at candidate forums throughout the primary campaign, it was almost lost in the furor of the Democratic Party melee that Schwartz also is running for mayor — unless you happened to be standing at the corner of New York Avenue and 7th Street NW.

"The Carol Building," as staffers jokingly refer to it, is hard to overlook. Every available space on the building is covered in Schwartz’s signature yellow campaign posters. Since July, when it opened, the campaign headquarters was probably the only place in the District anyone could find tangible proof that Schwartz was really running for mayor.

Inside, stacks of campaign posters, flyers, phone lists and voting precinct maps with push pins stuck in them evidence the preparations that have been going on for the general election.

Schwartz’s campaign staff spent the week after their candidate’s primary victory preparing her platform and organizing the press conference to announce it. Because her Democratic opponent in the Nov. 3 general election – Anthony Williams — was in Nantucket recuperating from the final primary push, Schwartz provided the only political news reported that day.

Rondeau said he doesn’t feel the campaign is getting off to a late start and he feels confident it will take shape quickly.

"I’ve seen some resurrection of the previous campaign structures already," Rondeau said. He was involved in Schwartz’s previous mayoral bid in 1994 and her successful 1996 at-large council race.

Rondeau conceded that Schwartz may lose some votes to Williams in what has traditionally been "Carol country," Wards 2 and 3. But he said much of that could be accounted for because of the nature of primary elections and the fact that Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 11 to 1 in the District.

Rondeau said he is confident Schwartz’s favorable ratings and high name recognition throughout the city will work in her favor in the general election, when voters aren’t bound by party affiliation.

Press secretary Daisy Voight walked through the office and pointed out the Democrats working for the campaign, herself included. With only a couple of exceptions, everyone in the office at the time was a Democrat.

Rondeau said he is not worried about Schwartz’s affiliation with the party that stripped home rule from the District.

"I think voters understand the difference between a federal Republican and a local Republican," Rondeau said.

Rondeau said they plan to run a "door-to-door campaign" in all wards of the District. The campaign is getting ready to open another headquarters in Ward 7 soon and possibly one in Ward 6.

Copyright 1998, The Common Denominator