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Steve Lerner has given up on the notion of John Kerry winning Kansas.

No Democrat has won the state's presidential race since 1964, and Lerner doesn't think this is the year the tide will change.

"The reality is our vote for president, our vote to elect Kerry, is not super-meaningful," Lerner said.

So Lerner, a Lawrence resident, and a handful of other Kansas Democrats are taking their efforts elsewhere, specifically, to Kansas City, Mo., to sway voters in what political strategists consider a battleground state that could swing to Bush or Kerry.

Lerner formed the Kansas chapter of Driving Votes, which helps Democrats travel from areas deemed foregone conclusions to swing states to register voters and campaign. Lerner's son, Matt, helped found the national organization in Seattle.

‘No point' in Kansas

Each Saturday, three to eight Democrats, mostly from Lawrence, drive to Kansas City, Mo., destinations to register an average of 40 voters per trip. They pick areas where they think Kerry supporters might congregate, such as the Westport market, Bannister Mall or outside a theater showing the anti-Bush movie "Fahrenheit 9/11." They recruit potential volunteers at the group's national Web site, www.drivingvotes.org.

For now, they're simply registering potential voters -- including a few Bush-supporting Republicans -- and talking about why they support Kerry. After the registration deadline has passed, they plan to go to Missouri to convince people to show up at the polls. The Missouri deadline for registering for the Nov. 2 general election is Oct. 6, 12 days before the Kansas deadline.

"There's no point in presidential campaigning here," said Alice Lieberman, another Lawrence Democrat and frequent participant. "Missouri's got 11 electoral votes, and right now it's about positively dead-even. We really feel everything we do could make a difference there."

Markesha Addison, 18, of Kansas City, Mo., fills out a voter registration form with Jim Hasselle, Lawrence, right, outside the Metro Super Thriftway in Kansas City, Mo. Hasselle and Alice Lieberman, background center, and others from Lawrence, traveled Saturday to Missouri with the Driving Votes campaign. They want to register voters in swing states who are likely to support Democratic nominee John Kerry.

Dead heat in Missouri

A Gallup poll released last week by CNN and USA Today showed Bush and Kerry tied with about 47 percent of the vote each. Independent candidate Ralph Nader had about 3 percent.

Driving Votes has designated Missouri one of 16 targeted swing states, and established 23 chapters in 21 states. Leighton Woodhouse, national director, said the group hadn't ranked its priority states but that Missouri was one of the most important, both in the Midwest and nationally.

"It's Dick Gephardt's country," Woodhouse said, referring to the Missouri Democratic congressman and former presidential hopeful. "It has a strong Democratic tradition. They have union supporters whose jobs were outsourced. They have a lot of people who are dissatisfied with the way things are going in this country."

Highlighting the state's importance, the Bush campaign made Springfield, Mo., the president's first stop Friday as he began a post-Democratic convention swing through battleground states. It was his 20th presidential visit to the state, which also has been a frequent host to the Kerry campaign.

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No GOP effort

Marilyn Greathouse, chairwoman of the Douglas County Democratic Party, said she understood the frustration among Democrats who had given up campaigning in Kansas. But she said it remained important for local Democrats to continue voicing their support for presidential candidates in Kansas.

"Kansas doesn't really count too much the way it is now," she said. "But that doesn't stop people from calling, wanting Kerry bumper stickers and buttons. Some people think our votes don't so-called ‘count' here. I think it does matter how you vote and speak your mind -- I'm certainly going to do that."

So far, Kansas Republicans haven't led similar efforts to campaign in Missouri. But Scott Poor, executive director of the Kansas Republican Party, said that could change if the Missouri race stays tight as the election draws near.

"We've made ourselves available to the Missouri side of the Bush/Cheney campaign," Poor said. "The president is going to win in Kansas, no one is questioning that. It makes sense to put resources where it will make a difference."

‘A sad commentary'

Allan Cigler, professor of political science at Kansas University, said the effort to mobilize volunteers to travel to swing states was a fairly new concept. But he said he didn't expect Driving Votes to make much of a difference in the election.

"What you see is a terrific frustration at the lack of competitiveness in parts of the country," he said. "They're trying hard to make their (efforts) count. It's a sad commentary, it seems to me."

For Lieberman, the Missouri pilgrimages represent a chance to campaign without her efforts being in vain.

"If we get a Kerry victory in Missouri, I'll feel great about our work," Lieberman said. "If we don't, I'll feel bad that I didn't do everything I could. Either way, you cannot sit on your behind this time."