Gore's campaign has become more populist.

As the polls show, Gore has been closing the gap against Bush in recent days, but his lead over Bush in California has been shrinking, while Nader's numbers in California have been rising. No heavy analysis is required to show that Nader, in effect, is eating into Gore's lead in California, a state that is so vital that neither candidate can win the general election without winning there.

Bush has Pat Buchanan, who is seeking to be the Reform Party's candidate, as a potential lead-reducer in this election. But Buchanan thus far has not proven to be as potentially harmful to Bush's candidacy as Nader is to Gore's.

That's why Gore had to come up with an antidote to Nader's potentially damaging impact on the vice president's run for the White House. And, based on early indications, Gore may have found the answer : populism.

Gore of late has begun to articulate the populist themes that are at the core of the Democratic Party's philosophy, but which in recent weeks have become the core of Nader's campaign.

For example, Gore has been stressing that Bush and the GOP are for the rich and powerful, while his campaign is focused on such working-family issues as an increase in the minimum wage and a patients' bill of rights that allow HMO members to sue their HMOs.

As a result, Gore has begun to climb again in the national polls, but California still will be a major concern for the Gore camp as long as Nader appears to be cutting into Gore's lead in that state. Nader, in effect, could be helping Bush to pull off an upset if the race for California's electoral votes, the largest of any state, gets close in the weeks leading up to the election.

Gore supporters felt encouraged when he finally began to solidify his Democratic voter base. Now, they add, Gore must continue to highlight the populist themes that appear to be helping Nader's campaign.

Nader has been making some inroads into the labor movement with his theme of fighting the rich and powerful who would not be working in the best interests of union workers and their families.

Gore's latest efforts appear to be paying off; he received the endorsement of the Sierra Club, one of the nation's largest environmental groups. That endorsement will help him fend off Nader, who has been making some gains with his strong environmentalist views.

While Gore has been moving to keep Nader's poll numbers in low single digits, he has been wise not to use Nader's name in these efforts. It would not be helpful to Gore to use Nader's name as he spars with him on populist issues. Doing so only would elevate Nader's candidacy and perhaps alienate members of his own political base for conducting what would be perceived as a negative attack on a man of integrity.

Gore, of course, will need a little help from his friends to keep Nader from eroding his base while the vice president focuses his attention on Bush.

Some of that help is likely to come from US Senator Edward M. Kennedy, the Massachusetts Democrat who will be a keynote speaker at the Democratic National Convention next month in Los Angeles.

Kennedy's convention speech and post-convention theme is expected to focus on the reasons to vote for Gore, including his support for legislative issues such as the minimum-wage increase and increased health benefit that will require his support as president. Kennedy also will cite other reasons for Democrats to support Gore, including his stance against the GOP's legislative agenda, which would help big business and hinder organized labor.

With less than three months left until the election after the August convention, Gore knows he can ill afford to make the wrong choice. He will know the fate of his choice within the next few weeks.

Robert A. Jordan is a Globe columnist.

© Copyright 2000 Globe Newspaper Company

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