Attorney General says she’s encouraged by support

Thursday, March 25, 1999 | 12:09 p.m.

"I am confident that if I got into the race, I would be extremely competitive," she said Wednesday. "The phone has been ringing off the hook."

Del Papa, a Democrat, has been considered a leading candidate for the seat being vacated by Sen. Richard Bryan.

Bryan, D-Nev., announced last month he would not seek re-election.

Former Gov. Bob Miller, considered a leading Democratic contender, announced last week he would not run for the office in 2000.

Michael Tucker, a spokesman for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said Del Papa is the front-runner for the party's nomination.

He said a Democratic poll showed Del Papa trailing former Rep. John Ensign, R-Nev., by four point, 45-41 percent. The poll showed Del Papa leading Ensign in favorability and job performance.

"If a Democratic poll shows us up, that's good," said Ensign, who announced for the race after his narrow loss to Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., last year. "They're trying to draft her to run."

Del Papa has been in Washington, D.C. this week for the annual conference of state attorneys general, and is meeting with key Democrats while there to gauge her support.

Del Papa had dinner Monday night with Joe Hansen, the executive director of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and has visited with the committee chairman, Sen. Robert Torricelli, D-N.J. She has also had meetings with Bryan and Reid.

She said she planned to make a decision on the Senate race no later than the end of the summer.