James Millikan, an associate professor of political science at Stonehill College in Easton, said he believes the attention the candidates have given to Taunton is a result of how close the race is.

"My guess is that they have looked at the polls and their own internal polls and seen that this will be a very tight race and that every vote counts," he said. "On the Democratic side, the three candidates are neck and neck, so they're going places they maybe wouldn't normally go."

"There is not a major city in the Commonwealth where candidates are not visiting and are not coming through to share there message with voters," Pacheco said.

Reilly has spent a lot of time campaigning in Greater Taunton because "he's doing very well in Southeastern Massachusetts" and people can relate to his blue-collar upbringing, Pacheco said.

Reilly slipped in the polls after naming state Rep. Marie St. Fleur as his running mate, only to have her drop out of the race less than 24 hours later amid revelations that she owed thousands of dollars in back taxes and student loans.

Reilly and Gabrieli both gained considerable ground over the past two months on the heels of widespread television advertising campaigns that started in early July. Patrick just recently launched a series of ads.

"We knew the race would tighten," said Mayor Robert G. Nunes, a Patrick supporter. "The polls will change between now and election day. Deval has only been on TV for two weeks. Reilly and Gabrieli have been on TV since July 4."

"Deval Patrick is running a grassroots, issues based campaign that's about going to where people live and work to learn from them the challenges they face and what they want to see from the next governor," she said. "He's done that in the South Coast region and across the state. Deval has been to Taunton many times in the course of the campaign, most recently last Friday when he visited Community Counseling of Bristol County and joined Mayor Nunes to attend a luau for older adults at the Taunton VFW."

Nunes said the numbers show how effective Patrick's grassroots campaign has been. Statewide, Patrick has 6,000 volunteers and 17,000 campaign donors. He's raised $4 million, a million of which has been through Internet donations.

Patrick, a former civil rights official in President Bill Clinton's Justice Department and a former senior executive with Texaco and Coca Cola, has said several times that he is committed to working for all parts of the state, not just Greater Boston.

"Listening to people from Taunton and from other communities across the state has helped Deval become a better candidate, and it will help him be a better governor," DeVecchi said. "He is asking people who have checked out of community and civic life to check back in and help him make a better way in Massachusetts for all of us."

Patrick grew up in poverty on the South Side of Chicago, then moved to Massachusetts to attend Milton Academy on a scholarship. He went on to Harvard and had a successful career in law before heading to the nation's capital.

Friday afternoon, a number of Patrick supporters held campaign signs on Taunton Green. Patrick supporter Jim McDermott said he was skeptical when the candidate first announced he was running.

"People want real change, and he offers change," said McDermott, who likes that Patrick isn't part of the Beacon Hill establishment. "Gabrieli's spent more than any other candidate, and the other guy is just a politician."

"I support Reilly because he's a known factor with a proven record," said supporter Mary Wasylyk. "He's from a working class family with working class values... He's been in Massachusetts his whole life and we know he's not going to leave."

Becky Deusser, a spokeswoman for Gabrieli, said the former venture capitalist turned political candidate has held a series of town hall meetings across the state. She added that Gabrieli has no plans to visit Taunton before the primary, but does have a fair amount of support in the region.

"We have a pretty strong grassroots effort there," she said. "We have 40 volunteers in that district. People are really responding to Chris' record of getting results."

Gabrieli, who unsuccessfully ran for lieutenant governor in 2002 as Shannon O'Brien's running mate, has touted his experience and success in the business world.

"He knows there's more to this state than Greater Taunton," Welford said. "He's the first attorney general to open a Southeastern Massachusetts office. He's always had great support from Taunton."

"It is new for some of these other people to be here, but not for him," said Pacheco, who explained that the attorney general has made frequent visits to Taunton to work on local issues.

On paper, Taunton is a heavily Democratic community. Of the city's 31,951 registered voters, 11,450 are Democrats, 2,776 are Republicans and 17,485 are unnerved. In the 2002 gubernatorial election, Democrats Susan O'Brien and Chris Gabrieli won 7,814 of the city's votes. Republicans Mitt Romney and Kerry Healey won 7,027, meaning many unenrolled voters supported the Republican ticket.

Healey and her running mate, former state Rep. Reed Hillman, "understand every region in Massachusetts is different," campaign spokeswoman Amy Lambiaso said.

"Under a Healey-Hillman administration, no city or town will be neglected," she added. Last month, Healey made stops in Taunton at Henry's Root Beer stand and Morton Hospital and Medical Center. Hillman is currently on his "On the Road with Reed" tour, a series of campaign visits to each one of the 351 communities in the state.

Healey will face the winner of the Sept. 19 Democratic primary in the Nov. 7 general election. Independent candidate Christy Mihos, a former Republican, is also running for governor.

"One thing I've noticed is the rather general nature of their treatment of the issues," he said. "My suspicion is that as we get closer to the election, there'll be more of a separation on where they stand on the issues."

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