IAMI, July 20 — American politicians have popped up in some strange places: Nixon in China. The Clintons in Chappaqua. Now, Reno in South Beach.
Janet Reno, that is, the pickup-driving, sensible-pump-wearing former United States attorney general who is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor of Florida. Ms. Reno drew about 2,200 people Friday night to Level, one of the hottest night spots in the neon-lit oceanside club district.
"I thought it was cool that she'd be here and it was a cool thing to do on a Friday night," said Nicole Gaviria, 32, a Motorola product manager from Miami. The fund-raiser was billed as Janet Reno's Dance Party, a spinoff of her famous "Saturday Night Live" skit in January 2001.
A roar went up when Ms. Reno took to the dance floor wearing a black skirt suit and sensible shoes, with a dab of rosy lipstick. She seemed out of step with the house music, but she said that was not the point.
"I think this is an example of how politics can bring people together instead of divide them," Ms. Reno said.
South Beach's gay contingent, black hip-hop aficionados and spaghetti-thin model types all turned out to raise the roof with a folksy but not fashionable white woman with little hip in her hop.
"She's trying to relate to the young people," said Lanina Lowson, 30, a teacher from Boynton Beach near West Palm Beach. "If you can relate to the young people, who are our future, then you've got their vote."
It was not clear how many partygoers were registered to vote or took time to do so at a table in the club lobby. Most seemed to be there to catch a glimpse of Ms. Reno, if not to edge toward her on the dance floor.
By Friday afternoon, news organizations from around the world were requesting spots on the media list. The $25 tickets were selling briskly. The R.S.V.P. list even included some names no one expected to see on Ms. Reno's dance card: Todd Harris, Gov. Jeb Bush's campaign manager, and Mike Murphy, a Bush strategist.
"I had sent an e-mail and said we'd like to come," said Mr. Harris, a 30-something, button-down Republican who admitted to being "genetically incapable of dancing" but who nonetheless brought his girlfriend. "I didn't seriously think that they'd let us come."
Mr. Harris seemed almost delighted to have been granted a complimentary ticket to the party. "Most candidates have to hustle to get money," he mused, "but this is the first time I've ever heard of someone actually doing the Hustle."
For one night, anyway, the Bush and Reno camps held their political punches in what could be a marquee race of the fall election season, when the Clinton administration's top cop hopes to take on the president's younger brother. Ms. Reno's hit party and improbable pop culture celebrity status notwithstanding, she will indeed have to pull off some fancy footwork to be competitive.
Ms. Reno, a Florida native who turns 64 on Sunday, is the front-runner in the primary against Bill McBride, a Tampa lawyer, and Daryl Jones, a state senator with limited support. Mr. McBride has raised over $1 million more than Ms. Reno, whose war chest before Friday's event had dwindled to $200,000.
Even if Ms. Reno wins the primary, polls show her badly trailing Mr. Bush, who has raised $5.6 million.
So while Ms. Reno keeps the media trailing her with such antics as a "Red Truck" tour of the state last spring, Democratic Party insiders worry privately that she could spoil their chances of unseating Mr. Bush, whom they consider vulnerable.
Mr. Bush, the Democrats contend, mishandled the widely publicized problems with the state's child welfare system. He has angered various constituencies with his policies on affirmative action and job security for state workers. He has also drawn criticism for Florida's role in the 2000 presidential election.
Some Democrats fear that the focus of a Bush-Reno race would become less about Mr. Bush and more about what some voters see as Ms. Reno's baggage. People still question her about Elián González and her Parkinson's disease and associate her with Bill Clinton's misdeeds.
The concern has prompted some party leaders to consider trying to convince Ms. Reno to drop out and back Mr. McBride. "You've got Bill with no name recognition and Janet with no money," one party leader said. "I think Democrats would be much better off if the institutional players were behind Janet or if Janet were backing Bill."
The Reno campaign has heard the rumors that the party wants her out, but it laughs at the notion. No one, the campaign says, talks Janet Reno in or out of anything. "I heard the same rumors but no one's approached us," said Mo Elleithee, Ms. Reno's campaign manager. "I fully expect we will go down to Primary Day."
Ms. Reno's fans say it is precisely her reputation as a political outsider that will keep people interested in the race and translate into votes.
"She is getting an opportunity to show she is a different kind of candidate and a different kind of politician," said Robert Raben, a friend of Ms. Reno's who ran the legislative affairs division at the Justice Department when she was attorney general. "It's Level, it's kayaking, it's shaking every student's hand when she goes to a university."
Bush backers say neither Ms. Reno nor Mr. McBride is a serious threat to Mr. Bush, whose approval rating remains high. "Neither campaign has figured out a way to successfully challenge our points of view on issues yet," said Al Cardenas, head of the Florida Republican Party. "I'm not sure who we would prefer facing at this point. The level of excitement is not significant."
If Ms. Reno's Friday night party is any indication, political observers say, the Republicans would do well not to underestimate her.
"It certainly is more evidence that she is masterful at gaining free media and keeping people interested in her campaign without having to spend a penny," said Susan MacManus, a political science professor at the University of South Florida.
If Ms. Reno gets the nomination, "the money will pour in because Democrats who were previously for McBride are not going to give it to Jeb," Professor MacManus said.
Mr. McBride's team dismisses predictions of his losing the primary. "The only lock on votes I think that she has is among longstanding supporters of her and parts of Dade and Broward Counties, and our polling indicates that, as Bill becomes known, support for her drops substantially everywhere else in the state among Democrats," said Alan Stonecipher, a spokesman for the McBride campaign in Tampa.
Besides, Mr. Stonecipher noted, while his guy may not do the night club thing, "We boogie down every night up here in the campaign headquarters." Of course, camera crews from the BBC, the "Today" show and CNN are not on hand, as they were on Friday night. Even Jeb Bush would be hard-pressed to turn a club party on South Beach into an international media event.
"I think people see she is a woman with a sense of humor who is a human being and doing things to relate to young people," Gerry Kelly, the owner of club Level, said. "There is nothing typical about this campaign or about her."
