January 15, 2010 2:06 PM

Obama to Campaign for Martha Coakley in Massachusetts

By
Kevin Hechtkopf
Topics
Campaign 2010
(AP)
President Obama will travel to Massachusetts on Sunday in an effort to boost Democratic Senate Candidate Martha Coakley, the White House announced on Friday.

Coakley, the state's attorney general, is running against Republican State Sen. Scott Brown in Tuesday's special election to replace the late Sen. Ted Kennedy.

The race was expected to be an easy win for the Democrat, but recent polls have shown it to be very close. The latest poll by Suffolk University/7News shows Brown ahead of Coakley 50 percent to 46 percent.

Though Brown's lead is within the poll's 4.4-point margin of error, those results and other recent close polls have brought massive amounts of attention to what was supposed to be a boring race.

Republicans have become energized by the possibility of ending the Democrats' 60-vote supermajority, which could also spell the end for the health care bill. That possibility has sparked wide concern among local and national Democratic leaders who are now trying to pull out all the stops in order to stop Brown's momentum.

As part of that effort, Mr. Obama recorded a robo-call message for voters in the state on behalf of Coakley.

"I rarely make these calls, and I truly apologize for intruding on your day," the president says. "[Martha Coakley] represents the best progressive values of Massachusetts. She'll be your voice and my ally."

Additionally, in one of its latest e-mails to supporters about the race, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee sent a message from Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), who spearheaded health care reform efforts once Kennedy fell ill.

"Health care was the cause of my friend Ted Kennedy's life," Dodd wrote. "So it sickens me that the Republican running to take Ted's place is vowing to be the 41st vote to kill health care reform."

Marc Ambinder's Analysis: Why Obama Is Going to Massachusetts
Scott Brown Vs. Martha Coakley: A Primer
Scott Brown Leads Martha Coakley in New Massachusetts Senate Poll
Could Massachusetts End Dems' Senate Supermajority?
More on the Race from CBS Station WBZ-TV in Boston

CBSNews.com political reporter Stephanie Condon contributed to this report.

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