Dean Campaigns for Lamont in Conn.

Incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman, who is running as an independent, speaks with reporters after participating in a 5-way debate with the four U.S. Senate hopefuls in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2006. The latest poll suggests Lieberman is drawing support from about two-thirds of Republicans, more than a third of Democrats and nearly half of unaffiliated voters, the state's largest voting bloc. He leads despite the fact that 60 percent of voters say going to war was wrong. (AP Photo/Bob Child) (Bob Child - AP)

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Democratic chairman Howard Dean praised Ned Lamont on Friday as the challenger dealt with a dose of bad news _ a double-digit deficit in the latest poll.

"No one was going to stand up over the Iraq policy until Ned stood up and then the people stood up because Ned was a great leader," Dean said at a rally for Lamont and other Democratic candidates. "We need Ned Lamont."

The campaign event at a downtown Hartford sport bar came as a new poll showed three-term Sen. Joe Lieberman leading Lamont 52 percent to 35 percent among likely voters. Lieberman is running as an independent after Lamont rode a wave of anti-war sentiment to an Aug. 8 Democratic primary victory.

In 2004, Dean was the Democratic candidate whose anti-war message and netroots appeal propelled him to the front of the presidential primary pack. It all fizzled in Iowa as Dean finished a distant third in the Iowa caucuses.

Lamont is trying to avoid the same fate.

"Your state has done something extraordinary," Dean said. "Your state had a courageous person step up when nobody thought he could win and take on folks who supported the Bush policy."

Dean and Lieberman were testy rivals in 2004, and the Democratic National Committee chairman's appearance for Lamont was widely expected. The Lamont campaign also unveiled a television ad Friday featuring popular Connecticut Sen. Christopher Dodd telling Lamont that he admires his decision to run.

Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, the party's 2004 presidential nominee, will campaign with Lamont next week.

Both Dodd and Kerry are 2008 White House hopefuls and appearances with Lamont would boost their standings with the party's liberal base.

Other Democrats, however, have been more muted in their support for Lamont. Should Lieberman, the party's 2000 vice presidential candidate, keep his seat, Democrats will likely need the three-term senator's vote in a closely divided Senate.

The poll released Friday was the first since Lieberman and Lamont faced off Monday in a debate. Among those who watched the debate or read or heard about it, only 3 percent said it changed their mind about whom they will vote for.

"We've never been driven by polls in the race," said Lamont campaign manager Tom Swan. "It is a much closer race than what the Quinnipiac Poll came up with. We are confident we will win on Nov. 7."

In the survey, Republican Alan Schlesinger trailed with 6 percent, and 7 percent were undecided.

The poll of 881 likely Connecticut voters was conducted from Oct. 17-19. It has a sampling error margin of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

___

Associated Press Writer Susan Haigh contributed to this report.