Penn picture of the Senate race

Rick Santorum in Wayne, Pennsylvania
Photo: Matt Rourke/APThe Democrats have a good chance of unseating the Republican incumbent, Rick Santorum, in the Pennsylvania Senate race.

It's another state News blog will be following particularly closely, and we'd like to invite Pennsylvanians to post comments on the race as it approaches its climax.

Mr Santorum, who has been senator since 1995, has consistently lagged behind Bob Casey, the popular state treasurer, in the polls. Barring an upset, Mr Casey should win next week.

The third most senior Republican in the Senate, Mr Santorum is an electoral oddity - a hardcore conservative in a state that usually elects moderates. Pennsylvania voters seemed to have grown tired of his rightwing views.