Still, key Bush organizers say they hope Iowa's choice will resonate a half-a-country away.

"I think it'll give us a little bump," said Massachusetts Governor A. Paul Cellucci.

College students, many of whom will spend the next six days in the Granite State, may prove to be the most accessible targets for the candidates. Harvard Students for Gore will have at least a dozen students in the state in the next few days. About 25 Bradley backers are scheduled to be there as well.

The Bush campaign has rented an airplane hangar near Manchester, planted dozens of cots, and set up residence for the young supporters who will work the phones and drive the elderly to the polls.

McCain's campaign has also set up space for volunteers to bunk, and McCain supporters at Harvard said they will have students in the state throughout the week.

Reaching Out to Voters

At a private gathering of key Bay State Bush supporters Monday night, Cellucci said that he and the Bush campaign have been in touch all week--recognizing, he said, that the efforts of Massachusetts Republicans have a lot to do with the get-out-the-vote effort in their neighbor state to the North.

All the Republican candidates will try to personally meet as many people as possible in the next week, said C. David Corbin, a political scientist who teaches at the University of New Hampshire. Bush has the most to gain, he says.