Gen. William T. Sherman's famous statement about his availability as a Republican candidate in 1884 remains well-remembered today:

"If nominated I will not accept; if elected I will not serve," he declared.

That position might fairly match the stance right here and now taken by erstwhile Republican senatorial candidate Jerry Coffee, who had to suspend his candidacy in this year's race for health reasons.

Coffee's name will remain on the ballot, but signs will be posted advising voters that he is no longer an active candidate.

Those signs were apparently not enough to dissuade one ardent Coffee backer, Gov. Linda Lingle, who said she has already cast her vote for the former Navy captain, Vietnam-era prisoner of war and motivational speaker.

This was just a personal decision, Lingle said, to honor Coffee.

But it's a good bet many Republicans will follow Lingle's lead, leaving the inactive but better-known Coffee in a reasonable position to prevail over the five other Republicans in the race.

That's particularly so since Lingle went out of her way to urge Republicans to stick to their own primary.

If Coffee should win but be unable to campaign, the local GOP will have to select someone to take his place. The logical choice would be the next highest vote-getter in the primary, but there is no obligation to do that. The other five folks in the race are Mark Beatty, Chas. Collins, Jay Friedheim, Edward Pirkowski and Steve Tataii.

The Republicans may decide the remaining five lack the name-recognition and firepower to go head-to-head with the winner of the Democratic primary contest between U.S. Sen. Dan Akaka and U.S. Rep. Ed Case.

Enter: Who?

Speculation right now rests on Honolulu Councilman Charles Djou, who is nominally nonpartisan today but is well-identified with the Republican Party through his years in the Legislature.

Djou, who faces no opposition for re-election, has nonetheless been running expensive television ads reminding voters of who he is and admonishing them to remember his name.

And it would be a no-danger adventure for him to run for Senate, since he would not have to resign his seat on the council.

But at this point, the drama seems more focused on keeping Republican voters "at home" than it does on developing a complicated and some might even say devious plot to get a hand-picked candidate into the Senate race.

It would make sense that Lingle would like to see Republicans stay within their own party. That decreases the number of people who might "cross over" and end up voting for the more moderate Case against the liberal Akaka.

Why should Lingle care? She might want to run for the U.S. Senate herself one day, when her gubernatorial days are over.

A relatively youthful and relatively moderate Case, in the early years of his Senate career, would make a tougher opponent than an aging and far more liberal Akaka in the twilight of his senatorial days.

Reach Jerry Burris at jburris@honoluluadvertiser.com.