Grassroots gathering for a Clinton’s return

Hillary Clinton, shown here with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, has been moving to the political centre. Picture / Reuters

There was a renewed rush of speculation yesterday that Hillary Rodham Clinton will attempt to become the first woman President of the United States following encouraging comments by leading Democrats, including her husband, as well as several new public opinion surveys in her favour.

Fuelling the gossip about his wife's prospects, Bill Clinton declared during a visit to Japan that his wife "would make an excellent President".

While saying he did not know if she would run or not, he added: "If she did run and she was able to win, she'd make a very, very good President. I think now she's at least as good as I was."

Meanwhile, another Democrat who may have his own presidential ambitions, Senator Jo Biden, suggested that his party's nomination for President 2008 may already be in the bag for his New York colleague.

"She is likely to be the nominee," he admitted. "I think she'd be incredibly difficult to beat. I think she is the most difficult obstacle for anyone being the nominee."

The outlook for Clinton has shifted since last November, when Senator John Kerry failed in his effort to win the keys to the White House. It seemed then that Clinton, 57, remained too polarising a political figure to have any realistic hope of rescuing her party's fortunes the next time around.

Now, however, a new consensus is emerging that the senator has been successful in recasting her reputation from that of a liberal out of touch with mainstream America.

She has been determinedly repositioning herself towards the political centre, repeatedly evoking her faith, voicing support for troops in Iraq, and, most notably, reaching out to opponents of abortion.

Among the hopeful signs for the senator was a nationwide survey published last week by Sienna College in Albany, showing a new willingness among Americans to consider a woman for President.

Six out of 10 voters said they thought the country was ready for a woman President. Moreover, 53 per cent of those surveyed said that Senator Clinton should make a try for the White House in 2008.

Other recent polls have showed the senator attracting a growing base of support in New York state, which she has represented in the US Senate since 2000.

For now, she continues to insist that she is focused only on seeking re-election in the state next year. Her job approval rating among the state's voters climbed to an impressive 69 per cent in a New York Times poll released last week, more than 10 points higher than two years ago.

She has apparently bolstered her numbers by appearing to avoid the spotlight in Washington and working hard for the state's interests, frequently travelling through it to meet voters.

More significant, however, may have been a Gallup survey last week that showed her appealing more than ever before to women outside the Democrat fold. It suggested that increasing numbers of Republican and Independent women, particularly in younger age groups, are taking a second look at the former first lady.

Analysts suggest that if that trend can be sustained and replicated around the country, it could translate into an important gender advantage in a presidential campaign. "My hypothesis is she will bring over women voters who normally would not vote for a Democratic candidate," said Gallup pollster Frank Newport.

Lee Miringhoff of the Marist Institute of Polling cautioned that the Democrat nomination is far from assured for Clinton in 2008.

But noting her broadening support among women, he said: "That would be a bridge that's a natural. The opportunity that she would be the first woman elected President would have some appeal. And that gives her an opportunity."

- INDEPENDENT