Time for the ground war_英文原版

both parties’ footsoldiers are preparing for the final push

“hello! great to see you again!” joe donnelly, the democratic candidate for indiana’s second district, has never set eyes on your correspondent before. but when your eyes are bleary with exhaustion, one face looks much like another. mr donnelly has spent months pumping hands, wolfing soggy dinners with gusto and begging strangers to let him serve them in the house of representatives. now, at a fundraiser at a small-town golf club, he is preparing to recycle his stump speech once again.

the polls give him an edge over chris chocola, the republican incumbent. but he cannot afford to rest easy between now and november 7th. iraq, he tells the $40-a-plate audience, has been a disaster. china trades unfairly. republicans give oil companies billions in tax breaks while failing to fund pre-school programmes here in cass county, indiana. he gets a standing ovation.

the democrats need a net gain of 15 seats out of 435 to recapture the house, and six, out of 33 contested, to take the senate. since most incumbents are safe, because of gerrymandering and the greater ease with which they can raise money, the result will depend on a couple of dozen hard-fought races. most voters will have made up their minds by now, so both parties’ priority is to enthuse their supporters to get out and vote.

most campaign spending goes on the air war—the dogfight of political ads on television and radio. this is now reaching a peak of intensity. in the final week of the campaign even casual television viewers in the metropolitan washington area, for example, can expect to see 42 ads relating to the toss-up senate race in virginia, according to the washington post.