Clinton leads Lazio in race fraught with mud-slinging

As the chaotic campaign for New York's open U.S. Senate seat draws to a close, polls point to Hillary Clinton as the likely winner over her opponent, Rep. Rick Lazio (R-N.Y.). But like many of today's races, the outcome is far from certain.

A Quinnipiac University poll released yesterday showed Clinton leading, with 51 percentage points to Lazio's 39 percentage points. The poll had a 3-percent margin of error.

Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson dismissed the importance of pre-election polls. "The only poll that truly matters is the one tomorrow," he said.

Eileen Long, deputy campaign manager for the Lazio campaign, echoed Wolfson's belief. "In the end, New Yorkers will choose who is best for New York and the candidate who will work for New York."

While campaign staffers sort through poll results, the candidates have spent the final hours before the election rallying support and encouraging voters to go to the booths.

Both spent the last day before the election in areas where their support seems to lag. Lazio's bus stopped in New York City suburbs and the boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan. He trails Clinton in these key areas by 1 percentage point, according to a Marist College Institute for Public Opinion poll.

Clinton, on the other hand, stayed away from the Big Apple, making appearances in upstate New York, where the Marist poll says Lazio leads with 55 percentage points to her 37 percentage points.

Carpetbagger

Throughout the campaign, Lazio — a Long Island native and graduate of Poughkeepsie's Vassar College — has labeled Clinton a carpetbagger not fit to represent the state.

New York Gov. George Pataki and New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, both Republicans, have endorsed Lazio and actively campaigned for him throughout the state.

The race began as a contentious battle between Giuliani and Clinton, but Lazio replaced Giuliani in May when the mayor dropped out of the race after being diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Clinton — who appeared with singer Nathalie Merchant, Buffalo Bills quarterback Doug Flutie and comedian Bill Cosby at campaign stops yesterday — has deemed her experience as First Lady an advantage that will help her handle politics inside Washington. Clinton also has tried to draw attention to the work she did before her husband was elected president.

At times the race has turned ugly. Lazio has raised questions about Clinton's integrity and moral character. A recent collection of ads accuse Clinton of accepting contributions from Arab Americans linked to Palestinian terrorist groups. In response, the First Lady returned $51,000 worth of Arab-American campaign donations.

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This past weekend, Clinton aired a television ad featuring a breast cancer victim who criticized Lazio's lack of support for breast and cervical cancer treatment. Lazio's wife, Patricia, spoke out against the advertisement, noting that her husband was the original sponsor of a law that provides financial assistance to uninsured women diagnosed with either breast or cervical cancer.

Yet, after all the mud-slinging and turmoil of a campaign that seems to have gotten the entire country chatting about Hillary and Rick, it is ultimately the vote of New Yorkers that will determine the outcome of the race.

(The Associated Press contributed to this story.)