NEWS: 76-DAILY CLASSIFIED: 764-0557 wwwmmichigandai ycom One hundred ten years ofeditorarlfreedom Monda November 6, 2000 K -' i A5 Senate hopefuls optimistic oof victory By Jeremy W. Peters Daily Staf Reporter NOVI - With the polls in Michi- gan's U.S. Senate race still showing no clear favorite, candidates Spence Abra- ham and Debbie Stabenow spent the weekend before Election Day greeting voters at stores, churches and bowling alleys throughout the state. Neither candidate wants to lay claim to an outright victory, but both say they are optimistic about the outcome of tomorrow's vote. Abraham, the Republican incumbent, said at this point in the race, events are essentially beyond his control. "You know, there's sort of a limited amount of things you can do. We've worked hard. We've tried to reach as many voters as possible," he said Satur- day after a visit to Border's Books and Music in Novi. "It's like any other com- petition, whether it's a sporting event or anything else, there's always a lot of adrenaline but it's good adrenaline," Stabenow, who has bounced back from a double-digit deficit in the polls, said she is confident but apprehensive. "You're always nervous. I'm obvi- ously anxious and nervous but its in a positive way," she said after campaign- ing at a Canton Kroger store. "I expect it to be a close race. Traditionally in Michigan, races are very close ... but I'm feeling really good about it." In addition to campaigning on their own, Abraham and Stabenow made appearances with their party's presiden- tial candidate, who were also in Michi- gan this weekend courting the state's 18 electoral votes, which will be vital to She winning candidate's campaign. Abraham appeared with George W. Bush on Friday afternoon in Grand Rapids and Saturday morning in Dear- born, while Stabenow joined Al Gore last night in Dearborn. With the presidential contest as volatile as it is, neither Abraham nor Stabenow say they are counting on the top of their party's ticket to sweep them Pnto office. "In the U.S. Senate race in Michigan, the voters are going to decide which candidate they want for the Senate," Abraham said last week while cam- paigning in Franklin. "If I don't win the race in my own right, I'm not goitg to win it just because of Governor Bush or anybody else on the ticket." "I'm hoping that we will help each other," St now said of the possibility of -a coat-tail effect, shonuld Gore win vlichigan. "Voters are traditionally very independent so I think people tend to make independent decisions and I cer- tainly think (Gore's) doing well will help me" Officials from both campaigns say they have no plans to rest until the polls close and the final results are tallied. "I think it'll be a late night, but a fun night," Stabenow spokesman Rob Gibbs said. "You do something for a year and it comes down to one day, you always get anxious." Arizona Sen. John McCain lent his support to Abraham yesterday by cam- paigning with him in Lansing and Tra- verse City. "From now until Tuesday is going to be a long haul," Abraham spokesman Joe Davis said. HE LAST LAP Candidates 5t d d N* By Yael Kohen Dafly Staff Reporter ABOVE: Vice President Al Gore pumps his fist at a rally yesterday in Dearborn accompanied by his wife, Tipper, and Democratic Senate candidate Debbie Stabenow. RIGHT: Texas Gov. George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, wave to the crowd at a: rally Saturday afternoon in Dearborn. Where the candidates will be today and tomorrow: George W. Bush: The Texas governor plans to hold rallies today in Gore's home state of Tennessee, Wisconsin, Iowa and Arka nsas before retuining to Austin, Texas, to await election results tomorrow. Al Gore: The vice president plans to spend 30 straight hours on the stump, beginning in Waterloo, Iowa, for coffee this morning and ending is his hometown of Carthage, Tenn.,to vote tomorrow. In between he' make stops in St ouis, Flint, Miamt and Tampa, Fla. DEARBORN - Michigan could be the deciding fac- tor in tomorrow's election, and the candidates know it. George W. Bush and Al Gore campaigned separately in Dearborn over the weekend, both drawing large crowds to the western Detroit suburb. And the message is clear: In an election this close, the candidate that can muster the highest turnout is the one with the best chance to win. Gore held a rally at the University's Dearborn campus last night and is scheduled to make one last stop in Michi- gan today, visiting Flint in the midst of a 30-hour campaign stretch. C T Bush rallied in Grand Rapids and Saginaw on Friday, staying overnight in Dearborn before a rally Saturday with running mate Dick Cheney and former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chainnan Colin Powell. "George W. came to Michigan to DAL.- ask for your vote," Bush told the thousands of supporters at Ford Field. "I need your help." Gore, explaining that this year's election is the closest since 1960, told the crowd at his rally that just the one vote per precinct brought John F. Kennedy over the top. "I want you to get me one more vote in your precinct," Gore said. Senate candidate Debbie Stabenow joined Gore to gather support for her own campaign agaitist Republican Sen. Spence Abraham. "We're working 24/7 to get to Tuesday, and we need you to do the same thing," Stabenow said. Gore was joined by his wife, Tipper, who reminded the crowd how important Michigan is to the campaign. "Do know that all eyes will beon Michigan," she said. Gore attacked the Texas governor for his tax-cutting policies, saying that they would thrust the United States back into a period of recession and economic downturn. "Under his own figures, he would give almost half of the tax cuts to the wealthiest one percent," Gore said, comparing Bush's tax policies to the "trickle-down" poli- cies of the Reagan years. Gore said the two candidates have different priorities and that money needs to be put into health care and education. See RALLIES, Ppge 2A Amy' of students mobilizes to encourage high youth turnout By Yael Kohen Daly Staff tRepoter With voter drives on campus registering nearly 7,000 students in the past year, the University ranks as one of the top, three colle-gs nationwide in terms of new voter registration. And with one day left until the polls open, volunteers are making sure those students turn out to cast their ballots. Efforts by the Michigan Student Assenibly's Voice Your Vote commission have given the University one of the largest student votitng populations in the country along with the University of Ore- 'on and the University of California at Santa Cruz. "You have an army in Ann Arbor," said YouthVote 2000 deputy campaign manag- er Ryan Friedrichs, a recent University graduate. "Nobody in the country is as good as this stuff here." Voice Your Vote, a nonpartisan effort to register students, is outto make sure stu- dent voter turnout is high, regardless of who they support. Today and tomorrow teams of volunteer are knocking on doors and staffing phone banks to remind people to vote. An MTV tent will be set up in the Diag today to distribute information and encourage voter turnout. Volunteers are not allowed into Univer- sity residence halls, where solicitation is prohibited. "Thankfully, most of the dorms are polling places," said a Voice Your Vote team leader, Michael Gold, an LSA 'sophomore. YouthVote 2000, a nationwide organiza- tion to encourage political participation among young voters, helped organize and provide resources for the voter registra- tion drive and this week's events. Friedrichs said one of the goals of YouthVote 2000 is that enough people vote this year so candidates, pay more attention to the age group in 2004. "Ann Arbor can become a model of how See VOTE, Page 7A LSA sophomore Mike Gold, RC sophomore Christina Hollenback, Engineering sophomore Mike Pearson and LSA sophomore Duncan Hwang go to the home of LSA sophomore Ginger Hartwell yesterday for Voice Your Vote. Down and out Rally supports marijuana legalization By Susan luth D~aiiy St'.tltReporter "Free the weed" was the theme Friday on the Diag as students and comunity members gathered to support the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes. As joints, bongs and other drug paraphernalia were passed around, onlookers listened to local polit- ical candidates from the Libertarian and Green par- ties express their support of the legalization. "I think it's absurd to arrest 689,000 people a year for a drug that's safer than alcohol or tobacco," said Charles Goodman, the Libertarian Party's candidate for Ann Arbor mayor. The rally was sponsored by Hemp A2, which was protesting the government's refusal to accept their petition to have a proposal on tomorrow's election ballot about legalizing marijuana for medical pur- pusesa. The group's petition had almost 6,000 signatures on it members, Goodman said. It was rejected because it was not turned in by the Aug. 9 deadline, "We don't want people to think we're a bunch of dope smokers .. because we're not. We take this very seriously. - Matthew Abel Green Party candidate for U.S. Senate though Hemp A2 maintains they were told the dead- line was Aug. 15. The proposal was also declined because the group did not properly identify them- selves on their appeal to add the question to the bal- lot. The group is currently building a new petition to have the question added to the 2001 ballot. "Our message is that the Ann Arbor City Council should respect the will of the people," Goodman said Matthew Abel, a Green Party candidate for U.S. Senate said the group believes that the "majority of Ann Arbor citizens support this issue." "We don't want people to think we're a bunch of dope smokers, though, because we're not," he said. "We take this very seriously." Many in the audience said supported the proposal, including one woman with fibromylagia, an illness that causes long-lasting and chronic pain, stiffness and tenderness in the muscles, joints and tendons. "I use it everyday," said the community member who asked that her name not be printed. "I have an illness and it's the only thing that works." She said marijuana "alleviates the pain," and if she doesn't take it, she is severely immobilized. "If I See MARIJUANA, Page 7A Northwestern's Napoleon Harris looks down and taunts Michigan wide receiver David Terrell. The Wolverines lost the offensive shootout, 54-51, giving up the most yards in program history. Full coverage of Saturday's game, Page JB. ya , >, ?S'', Stw}o-;:.., o... .; Imo..., .., .. ,. ;, ., ,.. , ... ;.'a .. >cV .' ;- .: . - ... %' : ," .. ;. .: . fir::% :: ti ..., ..-... < ,.r ,..,.. vaa,.... .... ... ,.:.:'S. ?C .. , a . a. .,. 'Srv S.Y , ; .°. :?::. _ WEATHER Tonight Cloudy. 5 0O Low 43. Tomorrow cattered s wers Cloudy. High 55. NEWS ARTS SPORTS ONDAY n rn h indIke arolling s ne Icers outshoot but lose After two days of accepting donations each, the Legend Bob Dylan rolls into Ann Despite outplaying the Spartans, University trails Ohio State University in the 19th Arbor to rock a sold-out Hill the Michigan hockey team loses annual Blood Battle. PAGE 3A. Auditorium. PAGE 5A. to archrival Michigan State, 1-0. PAGE lB.