Sept. 16, 2002 -- Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) has been fighting for months to strengthen his position in the polls as he battles Doug Gross (R), a corporate lawyer and onetime chief of staff for former Gov. Terry Branstad.

"The race for governor of Iowa is the political equivalent of a World War I trench battle. Lots of effort and treasure have been spent for little or no gain," political writer David Yepsen wrote in the Sept. 10 Des Moines Register. "Polls show Democratic Gov. Tom Vilsack and Republican challenger Doug Gross have been in a close contest for three months. It's an Iowa 'Battle of Verdun.'"

Vilsack took casualties in early September, when Gross garnered the backing of the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation. The move, while not a total surprise, undercuts the Vilsack campaign's contention that Gross, as a corporate attorney, is out of touch with farmers and other ordinary Iowans.

New poll numbers released three days later by two television stations seem to confirm Yepsen's account. The survey has Vilsack's lead slipping from 53 percent to Gross' 36 percent in early May to a lead of 48 to 43 percent over Gross in early Sept.

The poll did hold some promising news for another Democrat, though. Vilsack leads Gross by 11 points in the 1st Congressional District where Bettendorf mayor Ann Hutchinson, a fellow Democrat, is running against U.S. Rep. Jim Nussle (R).

Although most analysts say Hutchinson has little chance of knocking off Nussle, Vilsack's lead may indicate a chance for a Democrat to pick up support in the 1st District.

The news comes as the Iowa Democratic Party launches a new ad targeting Social Security privatization and calling for support of Hutchinson.

"The stock market goes up; the stock market goes down. Privatizing social security puts seniors on a roller coaster, not knowing if they will have enough money for food and medicine," the ad script reads. "Ann Hutchinson believes it's wrong to gamble with our seniors' retirement. She opposes any attempt to raid the social security trust fund and is fighting to guarantee the benefits our seniors have earned."