Far From a Hindrance, Gender Could Be Key for Clinton

Today, the senator's advisers acknowledge that one hurdle for Clinton will be to convince women that she can actually win -- a fear that women often articulate.

In her first race for the Senate in New York, her campaign targeted those very women in an advertisement showing a woman who said she tells her friends who have doubts about Clinton that they should "get over it."

Eventually Clinton won over a highly skeptical female electorate through relentless public appearances, old-fashioned retail politics and advertising. She won with 55 percent of the vote, including what exit polls showed was 60 percent of female voters.

Sources say Clinton's presidential campaign will attempt to implement this same strategy on a grander scale, by exposing her to as many people as possible in the small groups in which she thrives.

It was no accident that her announcement came in the form of a personal video, where she called her effort the beginning of a "conversation." And last month, she ventured onto "The View," the daytime show by women for women.

"There's no question women are stepping back and taking a second look," said Terry McAuliffe, a friend and adviser.

Polling Director Jon Cohen contributed to this report.