Chafee Aims to Recover From R.I. Primary

Sen. Lincoln Chafee, R-R.I., puts on his jacket before speaking with the media in this Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2006, file photo taken in Warwick, R.I. After a scathing Republican primary Chafee is finding his footing in the general election as he faces a well-financed and well-known Democrat, former Attorney General Sheldon Whitehouse, in a state where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans more than three to one. (AP Photo/Stew Milne, File) (Stew Milne - AP)

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Battered from a scathing GOP primary, Sen. Lincoln Chafee has struggled to gain traction in the general election against a well-financed and well-known Democrat in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans more than three to one.

While Chafee's political views are in line with many voters here _ he opposed the Iraq war, voted against President Bush in the last election and supports stem cell research and abortion rights _ recent polls show him trailing former state Attorney General Sheldon Whitehouse.

"Given the current political climate nationally, it seems to me it's Whitehouse's race to lose," said Peter Ubertaccio, a political science professor at Stonehill College in Easton, Mass.

Three weeks remain in a race that could help determine control of the U.S. Senate. Democrats must gain six seats to win control, and they see Chafee's as key to reaching that goal.

Whitehouse, who did not have a serious primary opponent, has had a clear, consistent campaign message in TV ads that have been flooding the airwaves for months.

Wendy Schiller, a political science professor at Brown University, sums up Whitehouse's message as: "I'm the man for change."

"He's selling the party, not himself," she said.

One ad, titled "Bush," cuts to the heart of the Whitehouse campaign.

"Bush needs Chafee in the Senate. Doesn't that tell us everything we need to know?" the ad says as it alternates between images of Bush and Chafee.

That's a powerful message in a year of Republican scandals and in a state where a recent poll shows Bush's approval rating at just 22 percent _ and ironic since Chafee often clashes with fellow Republicans and the Bush administration.

Chris Bardt, 49, an architect from Providence, said he would vote for Whitehouse because of the national strategy, even though he agrees with Chafee on some issues.

"If Chafee changed parties and became a Democrat overnight, I might vote for Chafee," he said. "But we've got to save the country."