http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-wi-presidentialrace-,0,6922894.storyBy SCOTT BAUER and RYAN J. FOLEY | Associated Press Writers
1:14 PM CDT, September 14, 2008
MADISON, Wis. - Sen. John McCain is sharply increasing his number of campaign aides and offices in Wisconsin, where he has worked his way back into a tight presidential race with Sen. Barack Obama.
Through a barrage of television ads, campaign events and the selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate, McCain has pulled closer in a state some Democrats hoped would be an Obama stronghold this cycle.
Now McCain is working to catch up to what Democrats say is Obama's biggest strength in the state -- organization -- by increasing the number of offices from 10 to 18 and paid staff members from 20 to about 30.
The developments come as the Republican Party base that had been lukewarm to the self-described maverick senator in Wisconsin has been energized by Palin. Across the state, Republicans are describing a wave of new volunteers and donations after the Alaska governor was added to the ticket.
"They're saying it grabbed their attention and changed their stance about standing on the sidelines and getting involved," said Tom Van Drasek, chairman of the Brown County Republican Party in Green Bay. "Now the energy level is way up."
Democrats concede that development portends a closer general election for Wisconsin's 10 electoral votes than they were hoping.
"It makes the chance of a bigger Obama victory much less," said Paul Maslin, a Democratic pollster based in Madison. "I still think Obama's the favorite in this state but I don't think anybody can be overconfident. It's still probably going to be fairly close."
Democratic candidates Al Gore and John Kerry each narrowly carried Wisconsin over President Bush. Kerry's 11,000 vote victory in 2004 made Wisconsin the closest state in the nation.
McCain has dubbed himself the underdog in the state but even before he selected Palin he had succeeded in cutting into an Obama lead that polls showed was as high as 13 points in June. McCain did so by visiting the state over the summer while Obama campaigned elsewhere and by outspending Obama on ads questioning his opponent's readiness for the presidency.
McCain's campaign and the Republican Party spent nearly $2 million on ads in Wisconsin between June 3 and July 26, nearly twice as much as the Obama campaign, according to the latest figures available from the Wisconsin Advertising Project.
State Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus wouldn't say whether he thinks McCain is still an underdog in Wisconsin.
"Certainly we have our work cut out for us. But at this point all of the energy is in our direction," Priebus said. "I think it's neck and neck."
After a slow start, the Obama campaign has stepped up its activity in Wisconsin in recent days. Obama campaigned in Eau Claire and Milwaukee in the last two weeks and running mate Joe Biden made his first visit to Wisconsin on Monday, courting Packers fans in Green Bay.
Obama still enjoys advantages in the state, which hasn't voted Republican in a presidential race since Ronald Reagan in 1984. They include a field organization that Democrats say is stronger than ever, his regional appeal as a neighbor from Illinois and an electorate receptive to his message of change.
Obama's campaign has opened 32 offices and four more are set to open this weekend. Dozens of paid staff members -- the campaign won't say precisely how many -- are working to identify supporters.
Some 155,000 Wisconsin residents have registered to vote for the first time since the beginning of the year, nearly a third of them in Democratic-leaning Milwaukee County.
Wisconsin Democratic Party Chairman Joe Wineke said the Obama campaign "has the most sophisticated and intense ground game in this state I've ever seen" in the last 30 years. The campaign has at least twice as many offices as Kerry had open in 2004, Wineke said, some in places where Democrats rarely have spent time.
The McCain campaign's decision to add offices and campaign workers points to a renewed belief that Wisconsin is winnable for McCain, said Kirsten Kukowski, a state Republican Party spokeswoman.
"We have seen a lot of enthusiasm in the last couple of weeks," she said. "We definitely have a chance here in Wisconsin."
Republicans say much of the enthusiasm revolves around Palin, whose anti-abortion views have excited social conservatives who were lukewarm on McCain.
"It's always nice when you feel the energy kick in," said Republican Party executive director Mark Jefferson. "This has been a real shot in the arm to those people who did think maybe this wasn't their year."
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