"We've got to guard against that," said state Democratic Party Chairman Richard Port. "We must not take anything for granted."

Former Gov. John Waihee said it can't be assumed that Clinton's campaign "will take care of itself" if a tough local race - like the nonpartisan Honolulu mayoral contest - ignites into a superheated battle.

Delegates say the keys to Clinton's success in Hawaii are:

A coordinated campaign that works toward the election of the entire Democratic ticket, from Clinton to neighbor island councilmembers.

Union support from traditional allies such as the Hawaii Government Employees Association, the state's largest public workers' union, and the 12,000-member Hawaii State Teachers Association.

Continued emphasis on themes from the convention, including Clinton's assertion that he can take the United States into the 21st century while Dole is "a bridge to the past."

Raising questions about Dole's economic plan.

Another goal of the coordinated campaign is to strengthen the party's base.

It has been the party's ability to mobilize its grass-roots that has allowed Democrats to be Hawaii's dominant political force for more than four decades.

Russell Okata, HGEA executive director, said all of Hawaii's major unions will be involved in the Democrats' coordinated campaign. Hawaii will also get a share - Okata didn't immediately know how much - of the $36 million that national labor unions have pooled together to run a pro-Clinton media campaign independent of the president's.

June Motokawa, president of the Hawaii teachers' union who attended the convention as a guest of the isle delegation, said educators are upset with Dole because of his attack on teachers.

Dole said he will disregard the political power of teachers' unions, which are backing Clinton, and will push for allowing parents to send their children to the school of their choice. That's a way to hold public school teachers accountable for their work, Dole said at the GOP convention.

Gov. Ben Cayetano said Democrats must stress the differences in the Democratic and Republican platforms and strongly challenge Dole's tax-cutting plan. "Dole's (economic) plan holds taxpayers - not the rich - responsible for the regeneration of supply-side economics," Cayetano said. "Our policies are more equalitarian."

The Clinton campaign, added former Gov. Waihee, needs to emphasize that Clinton is a centrist politician.

"In Hawaii, there is a big independent bloc, but it is not inclined to go with (U.S. House Speaker Newt) Gingrich," Waihee said. "They're not right wing, they're not left. They are middle of the road like Clinton."

State Civil Rights Commissioner Faye Kennedy said Democrats can neutralize the GOP's emphasis on family values by pointing out that both Gingrich and Dole have had two marriages. Clinton and the first lady "have stayed together, even though they've had problems," Kennedy said.

CHICAGO - Hawaii Democrats believe that President Clinton delivered an inspiring speech last night, offering hope, a vision and specific proposals that included expanding educational opportunities and limiting the need for welfare.

"It was a message delivered by a new Democrat, but it had the old Democratic message of equality for all," said former Gov. John Waihee.

State Democratic Party Chairman Richard Port especially liked Clinton's proposals for a second term. "The specifics are all doable," he added. "It was not pie in the sky."

He also said the promise of "a campaign of ideas, not insults" will set a positive tone for the election and bring back voters turned off by negative campaigning.

In Hawaii, Dr. Philip Hellreich, a former state Republican Party official who was a key delegate to the GOP national convention in San Diego, had a different reaction.

"The values (Clinton) talked about are Republican values. This was the coopting of Republican values."

Despite Clinton's talk of needing a Democratic Congress to get his proposals implemented, Hellreich said the president never spoke of raising the minimum wage nor of reforming welfare during his first two years when he had a Democratic Congress.

Gov. Ben Cayetano said Clinton's challenge to "every business person who has ever complained about the failure of yesterday's welfare system to try to hire someone off the welfare rolls" was a high point.

As an incentive, Clinton proposed giving business an unspecified tax credit for every person hired off welfare.

Cayetano and Amy Agbayani, who today begins her tenure as Hawaii's Democratic national committeewoman, saw Clinton's promise to expand educational opportunities as another high point.

For the middle class, there were tax breaks to help pay for college, Agbayani said.

For the inner cities, Clinton promised a national drive to ensure that all children are able to read on their own by the third grade, Agbayani said.