DaytonDailyNews.com

WESTERVILLE — Symbolic of their neck-and-neck race, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama campaigned less than two miles apart in this Columbus suburb Sunday, March 2, making their final push for votes in the Democratic presidential primary on Tuesday, March 4.

Clinton rallied 3,000 supporters in the Westerville North High School gym in the morning, and more than three hours later Obama held a town hall meeting at Westerville Central High School, 1½ miles away.

Clinton also campaigned on Sunday at Austintown Fitch High School near Youngstown and picked up the endorsement of middleweight boxing champ Kelly "The Ghost" Pavlik.

Later at Garfield High School in Akron, the crowd greeted her with "Hill-a-ry" before her day ended with two Cleveland-area events.

Clinton is scheduled to be in Toledo today, March 3, and plans to be in Columbus on election night.

Obama is set to be in Texas today.

At the rally here, Clinton proclaimed herself ready to be commander in chief and ready to take 3 a.m. crises calls — a point she made in a TV ad airing in Texas.

"This is a war-time election. There are two wars going on. We have to end the war in Iraq and we have to win the war in Afghanistan," Clinton said. "We need a president who will repair our frayed relationships around the world. I know the world will breathe a sigh of relief when President Bush leaves the White House."

Here and in Akron she sprinkled her remarks with references to Dayton and other Ohio cities where she said the middle class is being squeezed by soaring gas prices, predatory loans, costly college tuition and job losses. She said she has the experience to turn things around.

"I'm a fighter and a doer and a champion and I will go to work for you," she said in Akron.

That's what Gilbert Gaspar, 58, a factory worker, was looking for.

"I'm old enough to realize experience really counts," said Gaspar.

In Westerville, volunteers asked supporters to go door-to-door for Clinton, offering up folders with voter lists, Google maps and printed directions to precincts in Columbus.

Akron volunteer Vicki Schafer said she's been stunned by the response.

"I literally had women running out of their houses after me. They wanted anything to pass out for Hillary," said Schafer, 54, a lawyer.

Melissa Arnold, 30, of Westerville, said Clinton has the experience the country needs.

"A woman would run the country differently and I think it's time to see what a woman would do in that position," said Arnold.

Marcy Shaw, a retired deputy sheriff from Medina, left the Akron rally pumped up, with three grandchildren in tow.

"I believe everything she said," said Shaw. "It's the God's truth."