Bill
Smith still remembers the moment he began to think that one of his Democratic
colleagues in the county legislature might make a good Republican.

Recalling
a casual policy discussion he was having with Chris Wilmot, the Republican
majority leader describes Wilmot’s dialogue as “very lucid and a very
insightful analysis of what the core issues were.”

“I
kind of stopped for a second after he [spoke] and I said, ‘You know, you’re
starting to sound a lot like a Republican.’ I said ‘You’d better be careful
where you say these things; you’re going to get in trouble with the Democratic
Party.'”

A
year and a half later, Wilmot need no longer worry about getting in trouble
with the Democratic Party; last Friday, the term-limited county legislator
announced he’s switching his party registration to Republican.

Wilmot’s
involvement in the Democratic Party dates back to one of Gary Hart’s campaigns for
president in the 1980s: “Even though it wasn’t successful, it was an exciting
time in my life.” Wilmot’s tone verges on the wistful as he adds: “I loved the
Democratic Party and I believed in it, and even today I still believe in it in
many respects.”

But
that love affair has been waning for a long time; Wilmot had been contemplating
a move across the aisle for more than a year. While admitting that he made his
decision partly on “personal” grounds, Wilmot cites feelings of alienation —
along with his sense of a growing philosophical rift with the party — as his
primary motivation to make the switch.

“I
felt kind of pushed out of the party in certain respects, and felt like I’ve
been treated like an outsider in some respects,” he says.

Perhaps
the final straw came last month, when county legislators Carla Palumbo and
Calvin Lee were elected assistant minority leaders, a post Chris had held for
years. Though both Wilmot and party leadership stick to the statement made at
that time — that Wilmot and Fred Amato (also term-limited) stepped down to
make room for fresh blood — the move also freed Wilmot to reconsider his
place in the Democratic camp.

“It
gave me a new opportunity to take a real look at what I want to do in politics
during my final year in the legislature,” says Wilmot.

That’s
when his thoughts likely turned to the issue that divided him from the rest of
the local Dems: his fiscal conservatism.

“In
terms of economic and tax issues and job issues, I’ve been trying in the local
Democratic Party to create a bit of a sea change, if you will,” he says. But
Wilmot felt stymied in those efforts by a party he feels doesn’t agree with the
value he places on helping the private sector.

“I
think that both parties, but especially the Democratic Party, should have a better
eye on what the business community needs,” since businesses, not government,
are the primary economic engines, he says. “I do think that the local
Democratic Party has not done enough to reach out their hand to business and
say ‘Without giving away the store, what can we do to help you create jobs?'”

And
while he shies away from directly attacking his recent Democratic colleagues,
his conviction on the issue comes through clearly.

“I
don’t think the local Democrats are necessarily anti-business, but I would say
this: I don’t think they’re pro-business,” he says. “There are times that I’ve
felt that the local Democratic Party is too beholden to, and too frightened by,
the public employees unions locally and at the state level.” As a consequence,
he adds, “it’s difficult for Democrats to get out in front on issues of
streamlining the size of government, making it less costly.”

Those
are twin assertions that Monroe County Democratic Committee Chair Molly
Clifford flatly rejects.

“I
don’t know what he’s basing that on,” she says. “We’re the ones that talked
about consolidating government last year.”

Clifford is
also skeptical about another reason Wilmot gave for his switch.

Wilmot
hopes to legislate more effectively as a member of the majority: “In my last
year in the legislature I’d like to assist my urban district in a way that I
could not as Democrat in the minority,” he says. “I still would be considered,
I think by anybody, a social liberal; I haven’t changed any of my core values.
I’m still pro choice and anti-death penalty and I still favor public school
reform so that city kids can get a better deal.”

But
Clifford says she has “a hard time believing that the Republicans are going to
embrace the things that Chris has stood for.”

Democratic
Majority Leader Stephanie Aldersley agrees: “I did think that it was ironic
that Chris complained to me that he was unhappy that Democrats did not support
all his ideas and proposals. But, in point of fact, Republicans have supported
none of them,” she says.

But
Republicans counter that their acceptance of Wilmot — and his liberal social
values — simply proves that they’ve become what Democrats once were: the
party of the big tent.

“I
think he’ll fit in well,” says Smith. “The reality is that the Republican Party
is a big tent party when it comes to a lot of these matters. There’s probably
more diversity of viewpoints on things like [reproductive] choice in the
Republican Party than there is in the Democratic Party.”

Steve
Minarik, Monroe County’s Republican chairman, also used the phrase “big tent”
to describe his party. “We have all kinds of people in our issues spectrum,” he
says. “So I think Chris, as a pro-choice Republican, represents the city of
Rochester; they tend to be more moderate to liberal on social issues so I think
Chris has a home.” But won’t that cause conflict within the Republican caucus,
which includes some socially conservative members? “No,” repeats Minarik
emphatically.

Wilmot,
for his part, sees only smooth sailing ahead. “The Republicans, in my opinion,
accept me as I am,” he says.

Not
everyone shares his optimism. “I think that Chris prided himself on being
somewhat of a maverick. And it’s a lot easier being a maverick in the
Democratic Party than it is in the Republican Party,” Clifford says.

If
that’s true, perhaps evidence of Wilmot’s first encounters with the local
Republican Party’s legendary discipline can be found in his statements about
entering the mayoral race. Though Wilmot, Minarik, and Smith all say they’ve
spoke of a possible bid only in passing, it’s clearly on the minds of
Rochester’s political set in the wake of Wilmot’s party switch. Wilmot won’t
make an announcement about whether he’ll run until next month. But, he says, “I
can guarantee this: I will not primary any Republican for mayor.

“I
won’t enter as a dark horse or as a renegade,” Wilmot says. “And if I’m the
selected candidate, I won’t anticipate any primary if I’m the Republican
nominee. That’s something I think the Republican Party usually does a little
differently.”

This article appears in Dec 8-14, 2004.