In Late Campaign Season Move, Bishop Rallies With Clinton, Biden

With the clock ticking until residents of the First Congressional District get out to vote, the usual effort to rally endorsements stepped up this week when Rep. Tim Bishop, D – Southampton, hosted a fund raiser with Vice President Joe Biden and a get-out-the-vote rally with former President Bill Clinton in back-to-back days.

On Wednesday, Clinton and Bishop spoke at Stony Brook University to students and members of the general public, reminding them to get out and vote. Clinton's appearance follows a fundraiser Bishop held with Biden in Manhattan on Tuesday that reportedly attracted about 70 people.

"I mostly came today to talk to the students," said Clinton, making his 108th campaign stop of the 2010 cycle. "I love my country and I want you to have the brightest conceivable future. Anyone who does not get out and vote is playing Russian roulette with their future."

Audrey Kubetin, Bishop's campaign spokeswoman, said that Clinton's aides reached out to Bishop earlier this week to appear with him. Kubetin also added that Stony Brook University has its own election district, which has more registered voters than any other district in Suffolk County, making it an opportune place to hold a get-out-the-vote rally.

Opposite the Bishop camp, Republican Randy Altschuler has shown limited face-to-face endorsements. Rob Ryan, senior communications advisor for Altschuler, said endorsements have been announced through a series of press releases. Former New York Gov. George Pataki also hosted a press conference call on Tuesday. Ryan called the Clinton appearance "probably more of a desperation move."

"I think Congressman Bishop is trying to align himself with a former president who happens to be far more conservative than he is," Ryan said. "It proves what we've been saying all along: this race is neck-in-neck."

While a Siena poll conducted between Oct. 6 and Oct. 11 showed 51 percent of respondents favored Bishop while 39 percent favored Altschuler, Ryan pointed to the inherent limited lasting impact of polls. "They capture a snapshot in time," he said, pointing to a specific poll last month.

A Siena poll released on Sept. 11 showed Republican Gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio ahead of Carl Paladino. Three days later, Paladino took 61.5 percent of the vote statewide in the primary.

As far as the impact of endorsements on swaying those polling – and more importantly, final – numbers, Stony Brook political science professor Al Cover said there are too many variables to quantify the impact if the race is indeed close.

"By definition, if it's a close race, there could be almost anything that would be relevant in pushing someone over the top," he said. "There are some interesting questions about endorsement impacts, but it's intrinsically difficult to figure out other than people telling war stories about a time when a candidate made a last airport stop or something and wound up winning by a couple of votes."

Cover stated that endorsements generally fall into two categories: respected people who know the candidates and whose opinion matters to the general public, and celebrities who carry enthusiasm and publicity. Kubetin said Senator Kirsten Gillibrand may be coming to the area on Friday to campaign with Bishop. Ryan would not say if any appearances by Altschuler endorsers were scheduled in upcoming days.

With Kubetin saying Bishop is "doing well in the polls," and Ryan saying the two candidates are "neck-in-neck," endorsement appearances over the next six days will only be one of several variables in an attempt to pull votes next Tuesday.