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GOP bandwagon runs on 'Palin Power'

Congressional races look to cash in on money, volunteer jump

By Stephen Dinan (Contact) | Wednesday, September 10, 2008

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Call them skirttails — volunteer numbers have skyrocketed, fundraising has picked up and even the polling shows closer races in some down-ticket congressional contests as Republicans say the effects of "Palin Power" are being felt across the country.

After Republican presidential candidate John McCain tapped Sarah Palin nearly two weeks ago to be his running mate, the requests started rolling in for her to campaign with House and Senate candidates, and they haven't stopped yet. In the meantime, the number of Republicans looking to volunteer for the party's national victory effort jumped 500 percent that first weekend, and congressional candidates say they've seen the enthusiasm bleed all the way down to their level.

"Our campaign phones are ringing off the hook, and we're getting a lot more calls, a lot more e-mails with volunteers, [saying], 'How can we see Sarah Palin? How can we get her to Virginia?'" said Rep. Eric Cantor, Virginia Republican, who is running for re-election. "Any doubts about where the Republican base is going to be have been erased."

Even with scrutiny of Mrs. Palin reaching saturation levels in the national press, Republicans can't get enough of her — and are showing their support in donations, manpower and other measures of enthusiasm.

Rep. Tom Cole, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, told his House colleagues in a closed-door meeting Tuesday that their online fundraising neared $250,000 during convention week, and the Republican Senate committee reported a jump from telemarketing — from about $20,000 on a typical weekend to $54,000 the weekend that Mrs. Palin was selected.

"She is a game-changer for the presidential. We believe she's a game-changer for all of our Senate races," said Rebecca Fisher, a spokeswoman for the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee, who said the requests for Mrs. Palin to campaign with Senate candidates are rolling in.

"We've gotten a lot of requests," Mrs. Fisher said. "They're saying, 'We would love to have her in our state to help.'"

Political scientists have long debated coattails, the theory that a presidential candidate's popularity can help pull House and Senate members into office along with the top of the ticket. Now they will have to add vice-presidential candidates to the question.

Democrats, though, say they're seeing the beginnings of reverse-tails.

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's campaign reported an anti-Palin fundraising surge of $10 million raised in the 23 hours between the time she finished her speech to the Republican National Convention and the next night, when Mr. McCain spoke.