Mrs. Clinton Hopes Lieberman Can Help With Jewish Vote

It is not surprising that one of the first things Hillary Rodham Clinton did after Al Gore’s historic announcement of his running mate was to dial 911 for Joseph I. Lieberman.

After a year of traveling from New York state’s pristine dairy country hamlets to its leafy suburbs and teeming inner-city neighborhoods, Mrs. Clinton remains stuck in political quicksand. To bolster her bid for the U.S. Senate, she has called for help from Lieberman, the senator from neighboring Connecticut and the first Jew on a presidential ticket.

Clearly, Mrs. Clinton believes Lieberman can aid her standing among Jewish voters uneasy over the degree of her commitment to Israel.

“I think it’s going to be fabulous,” she said about the possibility of campaigning with Lieberman.

Polls show the first lady in a tight race with Rep. Rick Lazio, the Republican nominee who entered the Senate contest after New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani dropped out for health reasons.

On Wednesday, Mrs. Clinton got a fresh reminder of how tough the fight is. The Quinnipiac University poll showed her ahead of Lazio, 46% to 43%, a lead within the survey’s margin of error. A Quinnipiac poll in July had the two tied at 45%.

Political strategists are divided on whether Lieberman can influence the Senate race, given the nuances and complexities of New York politics.

Some analysts said the potential for backlash against Lieberman in inner-city areas could hurt Mrs. Clinton’s cause by holding down turnout on election day.

“We should not underestimate the anti-Semitism that exists in some inner-city neighborhoods among some potential Clinton voters and among traditional Democratic voters,” cautioned Mitchell Moss, director of New York University’s Taub Urban Research Center.

Moss also said it was a mistake to think all Jewish voters pull the same levers in election booths. “It is a complete delusion to believe the Jews of New York vote as a bloc,” he said.

On the other end of the opinion spectrum, David Garth, who ran the campaign that first elected Giuliani mayor, said Lieberman’s presence in the state with Mrs. Clinton could seal her victory.

“I think it makes her the senator,” Garth said. “I think in New York it will be a big help to her.”

Other analysts said Lieberman should help her to a degree, but were uncertain whether his presence on the Democratic ticket would be enough to guarantee her victory.

“Hillary will be the beneficiary,” predicted George Arzt, a Democratic political consultant and former press secretary to former Mayor Edward I. Koch. “People in the Jewish community, both mainstream and orthodox, had some concerns about Hillary and her record on Israel, particularly after the Mrs. Arafat kiss.”

Arzt referred to the anger among many Jewish voters last year when Mrs. Clinton, during a visit to the West Bank, embraced and kissed Suha Arafat after the wife of Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat had excoriated Israel in a speech.

Lieberman’s selection by Gore, Arzt said, “will put many of the Jewish voters solidly in the Democratic camp. It is enough to give [Mrs. Clinton] a bounce.”

But he added: “I don’t know if it’s enough to swing the election.”

That view was shared by Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist Poll in New York.

“It clearly comes as welcome news for her,” he said. “One would expect a high turnout among Jewish voters and a coalescing around the Democratic line. That doesn’t mean her problems with the Jews go away.”

The Quinnipiac Poll showed Mrs. Clinton receiving 52% of the Jewish vote and Lazio 36% in a state where successful Democratic candidates generally receive a minimum of 60%.

The poll also underlined Mrs. Clinton’s weakness in the suburbs, where Lazio, a congressman from suburban Long Island, leads, 57% to 35%. “The suburbs are very bad for her,” Miringoff said. “Her negatives are high there. . . . She is not doing well with white women, middle-aged and older. That is a problem area for her. They have a whole slew of concerns. Some is the scandals, some is Clinton fatigue. People don’t think she has earned it.”