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Gov. Bill Richardson peers through a door at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union Hall on Alexander Boulevard Northeast before addressing a crowd of supporters. Richardson's campaign called the rally on Oct. 25 to keep up momentum for his Democratic presidential bid. Only 10 weeks remain before the crucial early primaries on which he has pinned his hopes.

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The alert posted on Gov. Bill Richardson's presidential campaign Web site practically shouted the call to action.

With just 10 weeks until the first votes are cast in the 2008 Democratic presidential primary, the campaign needs backers to rally for Richardson.

Now.

"Time is of the essence — and Governor Richardson needs your help and support now more than ever to keep the momentum rolling to take back the White House in 2008!" the recent posting said.

To show that support, the campaign asked people to turn out on Oct. 25 at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in Albuquerque. About 225 people obliged, gathering in the union hall in northeast Albuquerque.

They were there in part to sign up for Richardson's Road Runners — a group already 1,400 people strong that in early November will caravan to Iowa to knock on doors for the governor.

But is the Richardson crowd — here in New Mexico and across the nation — big enough?

Consider: Richardson this week was behind prankster and comedian Stephen Colbert in one poll.

The New Republic this month urged him to drop out and run for U.S. Senate.

His campaign wallet remains teensy compared with the more monied candidates Sen. Hillary Clinton, a New York Democrat, and Sen. Barack Obama, an Illinois Democrat.

And his gaffes are adding up — as are those of the other would-bes — as the ardor of the trail starts to strain the campaigners.

Setbacks aside, Richardson and his followers are upbeat.

"It's very optimistic, very energized and we're very confident going into the last 2 months before the caucuses and primaries that the governor is going to show very strong," said campaign spokesman Pahl Shipley.

A handful of anti-abortion protestors at the union hall event didn't dim the enthusiasm, Shipley said.

"There's great momentum, there's been a great response to the governor, and things can change very, very quickly. There's still a lot of people out there who can change their minds."

But is the governor right to be so optimistic?

Political scientists say that depends on how well he really wants to do.

Cary Covington, an associate professor of political science at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, said Richardson has reason to be hopeful — at least that he can come in at the top of the second-tier in Iowa.

"He's got a good chance at fourth," he said.

But he'll need to fortify his presence there. Covington said Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware and Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut are raising their stakes in Iowa, with Dodd recently moving there for the rest of the campaign.

"They are all making a push to come in at the top of the second tier," Covington said.

If he can get beyond Iowa and New Hampshire, Richardson will have to pick up the pace to do well in later primary states like Arizona, said University of Arizona political science professor John Garcia.

"I haven't seen any major kind of movement, in either direction," Garcia said. "I'd say he really has been stagnant."

Richardson might not have reason to be optimistic, Garcia said, at least when it comes to recent poll numbers.

"It's got to be at the least discouraging, because his entrance in the race was quite some time ago and he hasn't picked up any movement," he said.

Garcia described Richardson's campaign in Arizona, for example, as "generally low key." The governor over the weekend is scheduled to visit Tucson and Phoenix, in part to launch Hispanic campaign support groups in those cities.

Richardson's campaign is quick to point out polls that show rising popularity.

And supporters say history shows eventual presidential winners such as Bill Clinton started from behind in the polls and surged later on — something they still believe Richardson can pull off.

While the governor has hovered at around 3 percent in national polls, he recently scored as high as 12 percent in Iowa, and is averaging 9 percent in Pollster.com surveys there this month.

But that hasn't necessarily translated to popularity on the street, now that Richardson has been in the race for months, Covington said.

"When he first announced, there was a lot of buzz about him having the best r‚sum‚, but that's gone away," he said. "It's sort of like old news."

While Richardson might be less known than other Democrats, Covington said he shares one problem with his fellow nomination seekers.

"The problem is how do they all break out of the plateau they are on? The Democrats have plateaued and I think they are all starting to struggle and think `How can I get people to look at me fresh?' " he said.

Richardson could always change directions and jump into the race for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Pete Domenici, an Albuquerque Republican.

Richardson has flatly rejected the idea, although many local political observers agree he could win the seat with his eyes closed if he wanted.

"I think he has an open shot," said New Mexico State University government professor Jose Garcia. "I don't think too many people would want to be challenging him."