Kucinich to visit Utah after all

A Democratic presidential candidate will make a pit stop in Utah before Tuesday's primary election after all.

But supporters of the two front-runners, Sens. John Kerry and John Edwards, as well as the outspoken Rev. Al Sharpton, might want to keep their fingers crossed. The Beehive State still isn't in their travel itineraries — it's Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio who has decided (again) to drop by.

Kucinich, who's lagging far behind the rest of the candidates, announced Saturday he would make a quick trip to Utah after canceling plans to visit the state last week. It will be short and sweet — Kucinich will arrive today about 10 a.m. and hold a press conference in the International Terminal Building at Salt Lake City International Airport.

Kucinich opted to come after learning a Sunday-night debate sponsored by the League of Women Voters in Los Angeles was called off. He'll stay here for an hour and then leave for Hawaii, which also will hold a Democratic primary Tuesday, as will Idaho.

"I think it's great he's coming here," said Utah State Democratic Party Chairman Donald Dunn. "I think it shows this primary is still considered kind of a race by several of the candidates. It's great for promoting the interest on the primaries."

Kucinich clearly hopes to increase his visibility and bolster his chances among Utah voters while other candidates ignore the strong Republican state in favor of concentrating on key March 2 "Super Tuesday" states. So far Kucinich has only procured two delegates for the Democratic National Convention, compared to 613 for Kerry, 192 for Edwards and 16 for Sharpton. Utah has 23 of its 29 delegates up for grabs Tuesday (the rest being so-called "super delegates" who can choose for themselves).

"We are delighted to have this opportunity to hear from Congressman Kucinich," said his state campaign coordinator, Joe Inman. "While this is just a brief stopover, Dennis is still the only candidate to make any effort to get to Utah so far."

By coming, Inman said the candidate also wants to help build the state's democratic party and spark primary participation.

Kucinich is one of the three presidential candidates on Utah's primary ballot who are still actively campaigning, Kerry, D-Mass., and Edwards, D-N.C., being the other two. Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, a one-time favorite who visited Utah early, pulled out of the race last week, following the lead of previous dropouts, including Rep. Dick Gephardt, D-Mo., Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., and retired Gen. Wesley Clark.

Kerry's campaign staff in Utah said Saturday the senator will speak to Utah media by telephone this morning.

Sharpton isn't even on Utah's ballot, having not registered to be included.

Kucinich's campaign will send some star power to boost his campaign in Utah. Mimi Kennedy, an actress from the sitcom "Dharma and Greg," will attend Monday night's Democratic Party Jefferson Jackson Day Dinner in Salt Lake City on his behalf.

Although a last-minute surprise visit by Kerry or Edwards is unlikely, Dunn isn't counting it out.

"I wish we could get all of them here," Dunn said. "Hopefully, I'll get more calls from some of the other campaigns telling me they're going to make a stop."

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E-mail: jody@desnews.com

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