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GOP targets Maine votes with Palin's Bangor stop ; Election 2008: The McCain campaign wants all four of Maine's electoral votes, not just the one for the 2nd District. - Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME)

TOM BELL By TOM BELL Staff Writer
Portland Press Herald (Maine)
10-14-2008
GOP targets Maine votes with Palin's Bangor stop ; Election 2008: The McCain campaign wants all four of Maine's electoral votes, not just the one for the 2nd District.
Byline: TOM BELL By TOM BELL Staff Writer
Edition: Final
Section: Local & State
Type: News

Sarah Palin's campaign appearance in Bangor Thursday will be part of a Republican effort to win all four of Maine's electoral votes, not only the one in the state's more-conservative 2nd Congressional District, according a campaign spokesman.

'We have seen evidence that Maine is a competitive state and is very much up for grabs,' said Jeff Grappone, a spokesman for the Republican presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. John McCain, though Grappone said the campaign is especially eyeing the 2nd District, which in the past has been more favorable to Republicans.
Palin, the GOP vice presidential nominee, will speak at a 'Road to Victory' rally set for 9 a.m. at the Bangor International Airport maintenance hangar.

The Maine Republican Party is encouraging supporters to arrive early because a big crowd is expected.

The event in Bangor will end a series of campaign stops that is taking Palin up the East Coast.

On Wednesday, Palin will make her first campaign visit to New Hampshire, making stops in Dover, Laconia and Salem.

The appearance in Dover will be a town hall-type event at Dover High School, starting at 9 a.m.

Earlier this month, when the McCain campaign announced that it was dropping its efforts in Michigan, it said it would divert resources to more competitive states, including Maine, which has four electoral votes.

Maine is one of only two states that split their electoral votes, rather than use the winner-take-all method.

Maine gives two electoral votes to the winner of the state and one to the winner in each congressional district.

Democractic Party officials have said they are confident of carrying the state for U.S. Sen. Barrack Obama because they have a stronger grass-roots campaign here.

Grappone said Palin will draw a 'clear contrast' between McCain and Obama on Thursday.

'Governor Palin will talk directly to Mainers about John McCain's agenda to put government back on the side of the people and keep taxes low to help small businesses across Maine invest and grow and create good jobs,' he said.

The Obama campaign said that Palin's message will ring false in the 2nd District, which has suffered economically under President Bush.

'The McCain-Palin ticket is offering more of the same failed economic policies that have caused home heating oil costs to skyrocket, retirement accounts to disappear, and jobs to be outsourced,' said Toby McGrath, Obama's Maine state director, in a prepared statement. 'Barack Obama has laid out policies that will grow our middle class and strengthen the economy. That is the kind of change Mainers are looking for and need from our next president.'

According to a Sept. 24 SurveyUSA poll of 675 Maine voters, Obama led McCain 49 percent to 44 percent.

He held that 5-point lead in both northern and southern Maine.

The poll had a margin of error of 3.8 percentage points.

The Alaska governor's visit to Maine will come just days after her husband, Todd, made a series of campaign appearances in Maine's 2nd District.

On Sunday, Todd Palin stopped at Dysart's Restaurant and truck stop in Hermon and Harry's Motor Sports in Presque Isle.

On Saturday, he made an appearance at the Moosehead Trading Post in Palmyra.

Although the rally in Bangor will be free to the public, people will need tickets, which are available at McCain campaign offices in Bangor, Caribou, Lewiston, Machias and Portland, or online at http:/ /maine.johnmccain.com/Maine.htm.

Staff Writer Tom Bell can be contacted at 791-6369 or at:

tbell@pressherald

Illustrations/Photos:
Caption: The Associated Press Sarah Palin will end a series of East
Coast campaign stops in Bangor. Gabor Degre/Bangor Daily News Mark
Bradstreet of Searsport talks to volunteers Lorraine Wilcox, left,
and Shelley Wirth at Maine Republican headquarters in Bangor, where
he got tickets Monday for this week's appearance by vice
presidential nominee Sarah Palin.

Copyright 2006 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.