Priscilla Hedges, Lawrence, left, and Susan Alexander, Perry, call registered Democratic voters in Douglas County at a gathering for presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Sunday at the home of Reed Anderson, 332 Woodlawn Court. Clinton supporters were calling voters to remind them of Tuesday's Democratic caucuses.

Pam Houston, Lawrence, left, calls registered Democratic voters in Douglas County at a gathering for presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Sunday at the home of Reed Anderson, 332 Woodlawn Court. Sara Galloway, 9, Lawrence, is at right. Clinton supporters were reminding voters of Tuesday's Democratic state caucuses.

For eight years Reed Anderson didn’t have health care, not until he found a job with benefits as an instructor at the Kansas City Art Institute.

“I had to do everything I could to stay healthy, because I couldn’t afford it,” Anderson said.

Health care, along with the economy, the war in Iraq and international diplomacy, took center stage Sunday, as Anderson and other supporters of Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., gathered at Anderson’s north-central Lawrence home to show their support for the presidential candidate.

Anderson expected as many as 50 people to show up. Supporters chatted and enjoyed hors d’oeuvres, but not before they whipped out their cell phones to call voters, reminding them of Tuesday’s Democratic caucuses.

Longtime Clinton supporter Pam Houston said local volunteers have stepped up their efforts to contact voters in the last few weeks.

“One of the things that can hurt a candidate more than anything is for people who support that candidate not to caucus for them,” she said. “We want to make sure that the voice of the people that support Senator Clinton, that those voices get heard.”

The fray

Clinton’s supporters aren’t the only ones intensifying their efforts before Tuesday’s Democratic caucuses and Saturday’s Republican caucuses. Presidential candidates are turning their attention to Kansas and the 23 other states participating in Super Tuesday.

Kris Kobach, chairman of the Kansas Republican Party, said the five remaining Republican candidates have turned their attention to Kansas and other states that have been overshadowed by hotly contested races in other states.

“I think the nature of the Republican race has prompted the candidates to put their resources elsewhere,” Kobach said. But, he said, the fact that the Kansas Republican primary is after Super Tuesday means the state may garner face-to-face attention from candidates.

“Kansas, by setting itself apart from the fray, is likely to see a lot of attention, so we are anticipating” campaign stops by Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, of Texas, Kobach said. Former Ambassador to Zimbabwe Alan Keyes is also on the Republican ballot.

Kobach endorsed Romney last Monday, the same day the Romney campaign named him its national adviser for immigration reform.

He said volunteers have been staffing phone banks and canvassing neighborhoods to educate voters about Romney’s stance on issues important to Kansans, namely tax cuts and illegal immigration.

The Clinton campaign has opened offices in Wichita, Topeka and Kansas City in the last two weeks.

“We have a lot of states, 50 states, that Senator Clinton has to figure out what she’s going to do,” said Dan Lykins, the Kansas Democratic Party’s treasurer. He said volunteers for Clinton have been campaigning in Lawrence since July. “It’s not that she hasn’t been organized. She’s had volunteers who haven’t received a dime working their tails off for her. I think we’ve been working harder in Kansas than Senator (Barack) Obama.”

In touch with every voter

Obama campaign spokesman Clark Stevens said Obama supporters will continue to canvass neighborhoods and make phone calls through Tuesday.

“We are getting in touch with every voter we can, and sharing our experience about why Barack Obama is the best candidate to bring about change, to bring people together,” Stevens said. He said Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who has thrown her support behind Obama, will make an appearance today at Kansas University.

Retired Air Force Gen. Tony McPeak was in Lawrence on Saturday, following meetings in Leavenworth with supporters of former Sen. John Edwards, who dropped out of the race last week, and military veterans. He likened Obama to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, calling him a “game-changer.”

“There are certain people that are game-changers, and just their presence on the field makes a difference. That’s what Obama is on the issue of international affairs. He’s a game-changer,” said McPeak, a former Air Force chief of staff.

Clinton is holding a national town hall meeting today, and an event in Wichita is planned so Kansans can question the senator. Teresa Krusor, vice chairwoman of the Kansas Democratic Party and a Clinton backer, said supporters will decide on a question to ask Clinton prior to the satellite meeting, which will be broadcast online and on the Hallmark Channel, Sunflower Broadband Channel 84.

Other campaigns have also claimed a presence in the state. McCain’s campaign announced a grass-roots effort called Kansans for McCain. U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback is the chairman.

State Rep. Pat Colloton, R-Leawood, is leading the charge in the 3rd congressional district, which includes east Lawrence. She said McCain’s stance on the war on terror and fiscal conservatism would resonate well with Kansas Republicans.

Colloton said the McCain camp was working hard to make sure voters know when and where the Republican caucuses are.

“It’s a mixture of getting the word out about the caucuses, not so much trying to convince voters to support McCain,” she said. “Our sense is that if we can get a strong number of Republicans to the caucus, McCain will win. His only concern is if the strong majority of traditional Republicans don’t come to caucus, then one of the other candidates will win.”

Also-rans?

Paul’s supporters emanate from the KU campus, where junior Adam Wood has stood outside Wescoe Hall, distributing fliers and stickers. Wood, the campaign’s Douglas County coordinator, said he is confident that Paul will win the state on Saturday.

“We have a really good chance of winning Kansas,” Wood said. “I think turnout’s going to be low, and even if it isn’t, we’ve had a campaign (in Kansas) for a lot longer. Everybody else has been ignoring these states until a few weeks ago.”

He said volunteers would use this weekend and next to spread the word about Paul, a Texan who is described as a Constitutionalist and a Libertarian and who has trailed in every caucus or primary to date. Wood said he is hoping Paul will appear at the Dole Institute of Politics on Friday.

Huckabee’s presence in Lawrence is muted, as supporters battle the county’s penchant for ignoring Republicans.

“I’ve had people ask, ‘What’s going on in the nation of Lawrence?’ ” said Wayland Lankford, who is the organizer of a MeetUp.com group supporting Huckabee. He said his colleagues have helped the campaign spread the word about Huckabee in other states, and is working to develop followers here through local churches.

“We’re very hopeful,” Lankford said. “We don’t know what kind of position Kansas is going to be playing on Saturday. It may be that after Tuesday we may be getting on the stick and phone banking.”

Underdogs Mike Gravel, a former U.S. senator from Alaska, and Keyes, who ran for president in 1994 and 2000, have been absent from the local scene. Keyes lost the battle for Obama’s Illinois Senate seat in 2004.