Hillary Clinton shrugs off possible New York primary challenge

July 10, 2000
Web posted at: 6:38 p.m. EDT (2238 GMT)

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Campaigning in upstate New York on Monday, First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton appeared unfazed at the prospect of facing an unexpected Democratic primary challenge for the Senate from Mark McMahon, a New York-born orthopedic surgeon.

New York orthopedic surgeon Mark McMahon is pursuing a petition drive to get on the New York Senate Democratic primary ballot in September.

"We'll just have to wait and see what he says and what happens," Mrs. Clinton told reporters in Albany on Monday.

McMahon, who tried and failed to be considered for the nomination at the Democratic party's state nominating convention on May 15, instead pursued a statewide petition drive to get on the primary ballot in September. Although Mrs. Clinton easily won the backing of the Democratic Party, McMahon insists that "the people of New York" are not behind her candidacy.

"There is a huge disconnect between the 100 percent support of the delegates of the Democratic Convention and the people on the streets," McMahon told CNN. "The people on the street do not think 100 percent that Hillary should be the nominee."

On Monday, McMahon announced the successful completion of his petition drive, having gathered the required 15,000 signatures -- including 100 names each from at least 16 of the state's 31 congressional districts. He has until Thursday to file the petitions, which must be verified by state board of elections.

Even if the petition drive proves successful, McMahon faces the longest of odds in defeating Mrs. Clinton, who enjoys the backing of nearly all of the state's Democratic leaders as well as a seemingly insurmountable fund-raising advantage.

"We held our state convention, and the fact is New York Democrats are overwhelmingly in support of Hillary Clinton, and I see that continuing until the fall," said state Democratic committee spokesman Peter Kauffman.

McMahon concedes that he has no money, scant name recognition, and even less political experience. He often describes himself as a "nobody from nowhere."

"I'm running because I care about New York," McMahon says in a statement posted on his Web site. "I don't think Hillary cares about New York. I believe she is using us. I'm just not buying it. Someone has to stand up to her," the statement says.

Hillary Rodham Clinton: "We'll just have to wait and see what he says and what happens."

McMahon, 39, has never before sought elective office. He grew up in Jericho, Long Island, and went to college in Washington, D.C., at Georgetown University, where he was the valedictorian in 1981.

He earned his medical degree at Harvard and a master's degree from the London School of Economics before becoming an intern and then a resident at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. He established a private practice in 1993 Manhattan, where he and his wife of 10 years, Lynne, also a doctor, live with their three children.

Concluding a five-day campaign swing through upstate New York in Albany on Monday, Mrs. Clinton told reporters that McMahon's entry into the contest would not cause her to change her campaign strategy.

"We're going to keep doing what we've been doing for a year -- running a campaign on the issues, traveling around the state, talking about the plans I would take to the Senate," Mrs. Clinton said.

New York's congressional primary is September 12. Even when there is no competition, the state board of elections doesn't legally certify a candidate as the actual party "nominee" until after the primary.

In New York, any office-seeker who is not the chosen winner at the party convention but gets at least 25 percent of the convention delegate vote is entitled to be on a primary ballot.

On the Republican side, Rep. Rick Lazio, his party's Senate designee since the GOP state convention May 30, faces no competition. He said Monday that a primary challenge to the first lady comes as no surprise to him.

"Everywhere I've gone, there have been many people who have described themselves as life-long Democrats who are completely disaffected by the prospects of a Hillary Clinton candidacy," Lazio said.

CNN's Frank Buckley and Phil Hirschkorn contributed to this report.