t is a poke in the eye to Governor Paul Cellucci and the state's entire Republican establishment. And it is a setback for the state Democratic Party and Senator Edward M. Kennedy.
But Jack E. Robinson, the candidate who declared ''I am not a groper'' at a press conference that received national attention, is now the GOP standard-bearer taking on Kennedy.
The Supreme Judicial Court last month put Robinson on the ballot, throwing out state election officials' concerns about his nomination papers, and leaving the Republican party, the governor, Kennedy, other Democratic leaders, and many Massachusetts voters wondering: What will a Robinson candidacy look like?
Even Robinson admits he is a little sketchy on how he will topple the popular Kennedy.
''It's like a dog chasing a car. Once you catch it you've got to figure out what you want to do,'' he quipped.
Robinson predicted he will raise huge amounts of money - perhaps as much as $10 million - cast himself as a ''reformer,'' and challenge Kennedy on his major issues, including health care. He also said he will build a state political organization and hire media advisers, consultants, and campaign staff - all within enough time to be a serious candidate by this fall.
''Kennedy had better be shaking in his boots,'' joked Robinson, when asked about the meager $450 in donations that he has collected since March. Kennedy has more than $4 million stockpiled. Robinson said he will spend up to $1 million of his own money.
But catching the ''car'' has not been easy for Robinson. He has seen embarrassing details of his private life become the focus of national news articles. In March and April, when he first emerged as a candidate, he became a public joke - one of those rare public figures whose reputations transcend the usual confines of the political world.
The allegations ran the gamut: His ex-girlfriend alleged sexual misconduct and got a restraining order in 1998; while a student, he was charged with drunken driving and found with a illegal martial arts weapon - a surekin (the charges were dropped); and plagarism charges surfaced when he tried to publish a book about Pan American Airlines.
And then there was the bizarre multi-car smashup - not his fault - that occurred while Robinson was driving on the Jamaica Way and being interviewed on his car phone by WBUR radio in Boston. The tape, which has been played a number of times on national TV and radio, with startling sounds of tires screeching and Robinson reacting to the crash, added to the sense that his campaign was comic and little else.
The events led Cellucci and the state GOP to run from the Robinson debacle. Like the Democrats and Kennedy, they hoped he would never make the ballot. Robinson, who initially vowed not to raise issues about Kennedy's personal life, began making references to Chappaquiddick.
''If my personal life comes up for analysis, so should his,'' Robinson said. ''I will have to bring up questions about his, including Chappaquiddick.''
But with the SJC ruling, Robinson's image has been recast at least a bit. He is the David who slew the Goliath, beating the Massachusetts political establishment and winning a place on the ballot.
To be sure, his euphoria of fending off the legal assaults by state Democrats - and, behind the scenes, Kennedy aides - to block his access to the ballot was still evident well after the decision came down. He talked of ''reconciliation'' with Cellucci and the state Republican Party, although the governor and GOP leaders are pretty clear they won't endorse him. Robinson also expressed confidence he would meet with George W. Bush and get his endorsement - a development that most GOP insiders say is improbable.
Robinson, who has no organization and no fund-raising team, said he has already put nearly $200,000 of his own money into the effort.
Despite the relatively short time left, Robinson says he is confident he can build a statewide grass-roots political organization that will make him a strong challenger to Kennedy's run for a seventh six-year term.
But his strategy - raising huge sums of money and building a political machine from scratch - seems daunting. After the court victory, Robinson departed for a week's vacation and this week is attending the Republican national convention in Philadelphia.
Robinson is ever optimistic. He talks of grand plans to hire a new campaign staff, media advisers, and political strategists.
And he is convinced that voters will respond to his themes that he is a reformer and that Kennedy, after 40 years in the Senate, has outlived his usefulness.
Robinson said he will concentrate his attacks on Kennedy's record over four issues: campaign finance reform, education, health care, and taxes. He claims Kennedy will not support true campaign finance changes because the senator is one of ''the biggest recipients of soft money,'' and would not want a system overhaul.
On education, Robinson said, Kennedy is beholden to the teachers' unions and the educational establishment, and is resisting innovative programs like vouchers and school choice, programs that the GOP hopeful says are necessary reforms.
Robinson also plans to attack Kennedy on the issue that the senator dominates in Washington: health care. ''He's been there 40 years working on health care, and the system is worse than ever,'' Robinson said.
Most observers give Robinson virtually no chance of unseating the 68-year-old liberal icon, who polls show is as popular as ever. But those predictions don't faze the GOP candidate.
Displaying a tinge of braggadocio that is fast becoming his trademark, Robinson blew off the political pundits. He even claimed he is trailing Kennedy by just 10 percentage points, although he admitted he was using ''informal polling.''
''Those are the same pundits in March who said I would never survive the bad publicity,'' he said. ''They're also the same pundits who said I would never get the signatures. They are the same pundits who said I would not survive the challenge. They also said I would never win in court.''
