McCain ads coming to Maine, but not staff

UPDATED: 6:34 p.m.

UPDATED: 3:47 p.m.

NEWPORT -- Republican Presidential candidate John McCain will begin a significant media campaign in the state starting in the next couple of days, said state Rep. Josh Tardy (R-Newport), the vice-chairman of his campaign in Maine.

McCain announced late yesterday that he was pulling out of Michigan and instead focusing his resources on states such as Maine.

The McCain campaign has not yet committed to additional staff or a campaign visit. At a news conference in Newport Friday, Tardy said McCain’s campaign thus far has been based on a small number of staff but mostly volunteers.

“Maine is in fact a very coveted battleground state,” said Tardy, who is also the Maine House Republican leader. “It’s really a reflection of how close this is not only nationally but here in the state of Maine.”

Most of the McCain campaign’s attention will focus on the 2nd Congressional District, which tends to be more conservative. Maine splits its electoral votes, which means each district gets one of the four votes, with the other two going to the overall winner.

Tardy said the whole state is in play. “They certainly see that the second district is friendly Republican territory, so this is where the campaign will put much of its focus,” he said.

President Bush lost the 2nd District by 20,000 votes in 2004. Tardy said this year it will be different because McCain is a different candidate. “Maine voters have always held a lot in common with reform minded politicians,” Tardy said.

A spokeswoman for Democratic nominee Barack Obama's campaign said that the Obama campaign is already running ads in the state.

Toby McGrath, state chairman for Obama, had this prepared statement in reaction to the McCain campaign’s announcement yesterday that they were stepping up efforts in the state:

"Obama's Campaign for Change is working hard to earn each and every vote. We have built a strong ground operation in Maine that is registering new voters and getting record numbers of Mainers involved in this election."

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