Fiorina must channel enthusiasm into votes
WASHINGTON — Carly Fiorina’s first challenge in the Republican debate was simply getting a spot on the main stage. Now, after a standout performance, her next quest is to convert a burst of enthusiasm for her candidacy into actual support from voters and donors.
Her success or failure will determine whether her breakthrough moment becomes a turning point in the Republican primary or simply a footnote.
Supporters in early voting states said they were encouraged by the flood of local officials who reached out in the hours after the debate to pledge their support.
“After last night, I’m with Carly Fiorina,” said Bryan Gould, a New Hampshire lawyer who was among those contacting Fiorina’s team. Gould had also been considering Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Ted Cruz of Texas and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, but he said Fiorina displayed the maturity he’s been looking for.
Fiorina’s Iowa chairman, Christopher Rants, spent the day trying to make sure the candidate’s upcoming events in the state had space for bigger crowds. “We wanted to hold 150 people, better make sure it holds 200 — maybe more,” he said.
For Fiorina, this new attention will spur fresh scrutiny of her business record while she ran the technology company Hewlett-Packard — and a deeper examination of her current statements and policy positions.
The origin of one of her most attention-grabbing debate moments — her description of a video showing a fetus with legs kicking and heart beating — was already being questioned by abortion-rights groups, given the scene she referenced apparently was based on a verbal account rather than a video.
According to both Planned Parenthood and anti-abortion activists, there is no scene matching her description in any of the undercover videos at the heart of the debate over the disposition of fetal tissue from abortions.
Still, the debate’s immediate results were overwhelmingly positive for Fiorina, the only woman in the Republican field. Her campaign had to aggressively lobby debate host CNN to change the participation criteria just so she could qualify for the event.
“We feel like last night reset the race,” said Keith Appell, a senior adviser to CARLY for America, a super PAC backing Fiorina.
At least in the short-term, Fiorina’s strong performance could jolt a Republican race that has been dominated by Donald Trump.
Appell said the super PAC, which has been running the bulk of Fiorina’s operations in key states, will keep trying to generate attention through free media and campaign appearances, while holding off on paid advertisements for now. The outside group is also looking to bolster its roster of “community captains” that can help recruit volunteers and organize voter turnout next year.
Even before Wednesday’s debate, Fiorina had quietly garnered positive reviews from voters in early voting Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
Still, she’s struggled to translate praise into support in national polls.
