South Carolina poised to push up primary By LIZ SIDOTI, Associated Press Writer

South Carolina poised to push up primary By LIZ SIDOTI, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 22 minutes ago



WASHINGTON - South Carolina is poised to hold its Republican presidential primary earlier than Feb. 2, 2008, likely in mid-January, a move that is expected to push New Hampshire and Iowa to follow suit.

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Such shifts could mean the first GOP nominating contest could take place in December of 2007, in just four months.

South Carolina GOP Chairman Katon Dawson will announce the earlier date Thursday during a joint news conference with New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner in Concord, N.H.

"We're going to protect this battleground," Dawson said of South Carolina's historic first-in-the-South primary status.

He and his aides declined to disclose the date.

But several Republican officials with knowledge of probable scenarios say the most likely option is for South Carolina to hold its primary on Jan. 19, a change they say would lead New Hampshire to schedule its first-in-the-nation primary on Jan. 7 or 8, and Iowa to hold its leadoff caucuses as early as mid-December, perhaps on the 17th.

But these Republicans say Dawson, known to be a cagy political operative who talked in riddles to some about the date, also may choose to hold the primary on Jan. 22. That's considered the less likely scenario because it's a Tuesday and South Carolina has historically held its contest on a Saturday to ensure higher turnout.

"If they move, we will move. We'll have to see what happens," said Ray Hoffmann, Iowa Republican Party chairman.

Unlike in South Carolina, state laws in Iowa and New Hampshire require officials there to hold the first caucus and primary in the nation, respectively. As a result, those two states are expected to schedule their contests even sooner than planned with South Carolina's move. Iowa and New Hampshire long have sought to protect their status as other states moved their primaries earlier.

As of Tuesday, Iowa is slated to hold its contest Jan. 14, with New Hampshire on Jan. 22 and South Carolina on Feb. 2. Nevada's GOP caucuses are scheduled for Jan. 19, and there are no indications that date would change.

In May, Florida scheduled its presidential primary for Jan. 29, infuriating the South Carolina GOP and prompting Dawson to maneuver to change the date in concert with Gardner.

"When other states moved up, we made it clear we would make sure we were still the first primary in the South," said Hogan Gidley, executive director of the South Carolina GOP, which has complete discretion in setting the date.

Democrats in South Carolina would still vote on Jan. 29.

The evolving primary calendar is the result of states like New York and California moving their contests earlier in the year as the seek to play more of a role in choosing the nominees. As dates have changed, both Republicans and Democrats running for president have had to shift their strategies for winning their party's respective nods.

States have until Sept. 4 to disclose to the Republican National Committee the date and format of their nominating contests. That's when the calendar becomes official under national party rules.

By Dec. 31, RNC Chairman Mike Duncan must formally invite states to the nominating convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul next summer and declare how many delegates each state gets.

Any state that moves its primary or caucus earlier than Feb. 5 before that "call to convention" risks being penalized half its delegates under RNC guidelines set during the last presidential election.

"The RNC rules adopted at the convention in 2004 are clear and will be applied equally to every state party," said Lisa Miller, an RNC spokeswoman.

If a state changes its nominating date after the "call to convention," the RNC will penalize it 90 percent of its delegates.

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Associated Press Writer Mike Glover in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this report.