Connecticut Governor's Race Garners National Attention

The race for governor Connecticut has become one of the most closely watched in the country.

With incumbent Gov. Dan Malloy in a tight political contest, the Republican Governors Association circled the race as a target in 2014.

The cameos to Connecticut alone show how important Connecticut is to political power brokers.

Friday night, Louisiana governor and long-rumored presidential candidate Bobby Jindal will hold a fundraiser for Republican Tom Foley at a private home in West Hartford.

Earlier in the week, Malloy was supposed to welcome President Barack Obama for a campaign visit that was later shelved after the president opted to stay in Washington to work on the government's response to Ebola.

"Coming down the stretch of the race, it's in the interests of both candidates to bring in whatever heavyweights they've got because we've left the persuasion stage of the campaign and entered the rally base, bring out the voters," said Jerold Duquette, a political science professor at Central Connecticut State University.

He said it's telling that Foley would hold a private event with such a major GOP name like Bobby Jindal that places him in a particular political light.

"Even he is going to abandon worries about being pegged as a Republican at this point because three weeks out, people have decided [who they're going to vote for]," Duquette said.

Despite Obama's low approval ratings, in a state like Connecticut, Malloy has more to gain than lose by welcoming a presidential visit, according to Duquette.

"Even if the president isn't particularly popular, it has always been to the governor's advantage to remind folks that this is a race between a Democrat and a Republican, and so whenever he can call attention to the national political dialogue between Democrats and Republicans, it's useful to him," Duquette said.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie also cancelled an event with Foley earlier in the week. It's possible, and likely, that both Christie and Obama will return to Connecticut to campaign.

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