BANGOR, Maine — It is women like Linda Sinclair who have turned New England into a potentially tough playing field for Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois.
Sinclair listened with rapt attention as Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York spoke at a rally in Orono on Saturday morning, on the eve of Maine caucuses today. The 58-year-old committed to Clinton three months ago, and while she planned to attend an afternoon Obama event in nearby Bangor, she did not expect to change her mind.
“She’s really in touch with the common person, even though she’s not one,” Sinclair said of Clinton. “I think they’re both very bright. But she’s more solid. I think he’s fluffy.”
Obama drew a huge crowd in Bangor on Saturday: 7,000 inside the local civic center and another 3,000 cheering in the slushy snow outside the front entrance. Clinton’s events were smaller, but she was clearly in her element, talking health care policy to audiences of mostly older female voters, who have emerged as one of her staunchest support groups.
Traditionally Democratic women helped rescue Clinton’s presidential bid in New Hampshire by breaking her way in large numbers in the Jan. 8 primary. Five days earlier, Clinton placed third in the Iowa caucuses, behind Obama and former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina.
Maine should be friendly territory for Obama. Its voters are staunchly anti-war, and caucuses, which rely heavily on grassroots organizing, have proved to be Obama’s strong suit. But Clinton campaign officials are optimistic that her message will resonate here.
Maine is “independent-minded and has strong female elected officials,” including two GOP senators, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, said Clinton adviser Karen Hicks.
The candidate’s domestic policy proposals, including universal health coverage and middle-class tax cuts, are particularly well-suited for the region, Hicks said, because “everyone feels attuned to those issues. You have a lot of women working two jobs, working on their feet, with their hands.”
“We’re just not sure what’s going to happen in Maine,” said David Axelrod, Obama’s top political adviser. “The whole region has been challenging for us.”
Clinton’s habit of outlining her proposals in precise detail makes for long speeches but delivers the kind of substance that appeals to women, her supporters say.
“Women really do care about substance,” said Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., a Clinton backer whose home state held its caucuses Saturday. Likening politics to grocery shopping, Cantwell said, “Women want to hear the list.”
