The nation is watching as voters in Louisiana prepare to go to the polls Tuesday.

High-profile politicians are making appearances across the state for candidates in Louisiana's hotly contested Senate race, and special interest groups are spending millions to influence the outcome.

"This is one of the most critical elections for the United States Senate," former Democratic Sen. John Breaux said Saturday at a rally in New Orleans. "That's why people all over the United States are watching this election… The spotlight is going to be on our state on Tuesday night."

Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu's bid for re-election faces challenges from two Republicans, Rep. Bill Cassidy and retired Air Force Col. Rob Maness, who has been courting the tea party vote.

The race could help determine which party controls the Senate next year. Republicans need six seats to take over the majority, and Landrieu's seat is considered particularly vulnerable.

The Senate race represents Landrieu's toughest re-election test yet, political experts say.

"It's not every day that a senior senator has a chance of not being re-elected," said Joshua Stockley, political science professor at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. "Mary Landrieu has survived three elections and when you've won that many times, there's the perception that the office is yours as long as you want it."

But the race almost certainly won't be decided Tuesday. Under Louisiana's quirky election system, one of the three candidates must claim more than 50 percent of the vote to be declared the winner. Polls show that's unlikely.

Landrieu and Cassidy are expected to be the top two vote-getters, meaning they would face off in a runoff election on Dec. 6.

"The eyes of the nation are on this election because we're one of a few states that will determine the path of the U.S. Senate," GOP Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana told tea party supporters at a pro-Cassidy rally in Abita Springs on Saturday.

Louisiana's vote is a given in presidential elections because of its increasingly conservative tilt, said Jason Dore, executive director of the state's Republican Party. The Senate race "is really our best chance to make an impact nationally," he said.

"Whether or not we send a Republican or Democrat back to D.C. in the Senate is going to make a difference on what's going on and what bills are getting passed," Dore said.

Outside groups and super PACs have spent millions on the race and are certain to spend millions more in the event of a runoff.

Jeffrey Sadow, a political scientist at Louisiana State University at Shreveport, said the intense national focus "magnifies the strengths or weaknesses of the candidates in the eyes of the nation... and imputes a portrait of the state's politics and people the state."

Republican state Rep. Elbert Guillory said he has used that attention to point out pressing concerns, including the need to address local flooding problems.

"I want folks to know us, know our needs," he said. "It's important for us to make hay while the sun is shining, and the sun is shining right now."

Contributing: Susan Davis, USA TODAY


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