CLINTON TAKES LEAD, BUT RACE JUST BEGUN.(Main)

Byline: R.W. Apple Jr. New York Times

It has been a remarkable seven days for Bill Clinton.

Beset by fate and his own mistakes early in the presidential campaign, written off by his peers, the 45-year-old Arkansas governor entered July sensing a turn for the better but still trailing President Bush and Ross Perot.

He will leave New York and the Democratic National Convention with his prospects transformed.

Consider: Clinton has recast his party's platform and its image in a fresh, more moderate mold, avoiding damaging splits in the process. His unorthodox choice of a running mate, Al Gore, has won broad acceptance by the Democratic Party and by the electorate as a whole.

Clinton has taken the lead in …