President Clinton devoted the final day of campaigning to a whirlwind tour of three states in a bid to persuade Democrats to vote, despite predictions of sweeping Republican wins on Election Day.
With bruising battles for congressional races seen as a referendum on Clinton's policies during his first 21 months in office, the president was concluding eight days of campaigning Monday with speeches in Minnesota, Michigan and Delaware before he returns to Washington.While Clinton and his advisers insisted they were confident of broad voter support in Tuesday's balloting, a USA Today/CNN/Gallup poll published Monday found that 51 percent of Americans who said they were likely to vote supported Republican congressional candidates, while only 44 percent backed Democrats.
Clinton's message throughout his campaign for fellow Democrats has been aimed at generating a large turnout at the polls - either by appealing to Democrats' convictions or fueling their fears.
"Democrats have to feel like there's a reason to go out and vote. If they don't feel like there is, then it's going to be a blowout," said Tony Coehlo, a former California congressman brought in by Clinton to put the faltering Democratic National Committee in order.
"What Republicans have tried to do is convince people that this race is over with - they're going to pick up the House and they're going to pick up the Senate," he said.
"Their biggest goal is to psychologically turn off the Democrats," said Coehlo, who contended that Clinton "has been providing enthusiasm. Democrats are feeling that there is a reason to participate."
Experts generally agree that a large turnout by voters is likely to help Democrats, but it appears virtually certain that most of the nation's 110 million eligible voters will stay home.
The Committee for the Study of the American Electorate projects that even fewer Americans will cast ballots this year than in the midterm election of 1990, when just 36.5 percent voted.
According to an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, only 61 percent of Democrats said they were likely to vote, compared with 75 percent of Republicans.
Thirty-five of 100 Senate seats, all 435 House seats and 36 state governorships are at stake Tuesday. Republicans need only a gain of seven Senate seats in order to take control of that chamber, while it would take a shift of 40 seats in the House to change the balance of power.
On Sunday, Senate Minority Leader Bob Dole saw himself becoming majority leader, but Vice President Al Gore said Republican control of either the Senate or the House is hardly a sure thing.
"I think we have better than a 50-50 chance of taking the Senate," Dole said on NBC's "Meet the Press," which like other public affairs shows, was entirely devoted to election prospects. "I can't speak for the House, but I think it's very close," Dole said.
Gore, appearing on the same program, predictably saw things differently. "I don't think so," he said of Republican control of Congress. "I think there has been a Democratic surge in the last three weeks. The momentum is with Democratic candidates."
Dole and Gore spent most of their air time Sunday lobbing well-practiced political smoke bombs at each other.
One of the most conservative Senate Republicans, Texan Phil Gramm, said Sunday he also sees the GOP taking over the Senate, capturing as many as 12 seats, five more than necessary.