In a divided district that tends to vote Republican in state and national elections, Kratovil has run as a moderate who would be an independent voice in Washington. But he visited First Baptist in part to link himself with his party's presidential nominee.
"How many of you are excited about this week?" the Rev. Lewis N. Watson asked his congregation, to cheers and applause. "How many of you are ready to vote?"
Watson didn't name Obama, but predicted, "We are going to see something that we've never seen before - and I just can't wait."
Kratovil didn't speak, but he remained after the service to greet churchgoers. Lloyd and Phyllis Perry said they planned to vote for him.
"We've heard from both sides," said Lloyd Perry, a retired lineman for the Philadelphia Electric Co., who said his greatest concern was crime. "I like what we've heard from [Kratovil]."
After lunch at the Golden Star, Kratovil knocked on doors in Salisbury, visiting Democrats identified by his campaign to urge them to the polls tomorrow. Then he crossed the Bay Bridge for a rally with House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer - a Southern Maryland Democrat whom Kratovil has known since childhood.
Public and private polls show Kratovil trailing slightly in a close race with Harris, and the Democrat declared himself "cautiously optimistic" of victory tomorrow.
At the Golden Star, Carroll and Barbara Mills - he's a Democrat, she's a Republican - said they hadn't decided how they would vote in any of the races. Carroll Mills, a retired plant manager for a concrete company, said meeting Kratovil would have no impact on his choice.
"I usually wait until I get in the booth," he said. "I want the guy who is going to do the best job."
