CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Singer Joan Jett and comedian Janeane Garofalo joined Howard Dean on Sunday evening for a high-spirited campaign rally, but the big draw of the day was another woman who's less well-known: his wife.
Judith Steinberg Dean, an internist who runs her own practice in Shelbourne, Vt., spoke for fewer than five minutes at two rallies during a surprise visit to Iowa. But her brief foray onto the political stage was something of a coming-out event because, until now, she has shunned campaigning with her husband as he seeks the presidency.
Her unexpected appearance was such a draw that the 30-member media corps covering the former Vermont governor's campaign huddled outside on an airport tarmac for 15 minutes in below-freezing temperatures just to catch a glimpse of his elusive spouse.
As she came to the stage with her husband for a 1,400-person rally at West High School in Davenport, the crowd erupted in a chant of "Judy! Judy! Judy!" Beaming, she thanked Iowans for welcoming Howard Dean to their state and introduced herself.
"For those who might be wondering, my name is Judy Dean," she said, blushing as the audience roared its approval.
Her decision to stay out of the limelight was a departure from the role the spouses of candidates usually play, and has begun to generate debate as her husband's profile has grown -- and as the Democratic race has grown increasingly tighter. Voters have asked Howard Dean when they will get to see more of her, and reporters have pressed him about why she does not make appearances.
But the candidate, who met his wife when they were both medical students in New York, has been steadfast in his refusal to ask his wife to join him regularly on the stump.
"Her goal in life is to be a good doctor and a good mom, and I think that is a pretty good goal," Dean said recently. "I do not intend to drag her around because I think I need her as a prop on the campaign trail."
Some experts believe a spouse's presence, no matter how minimal, can serve to humanize a candidate beyond his policies and rhetoric.
"Americans develop some perception on the candidates based on his spouse and his family," said Myra Gutin, a professor of communication at Rider University in New Jersey. Presidential races are not "won or lost on that, but it's a measure of character," Gutin said.
