"I'll probably vote for Hillary Clinton - she's got more experience," Hasson, 50, said last week. Plus, he said, he did not feel comfortable with Obama "after that pastor and stuff," referring to anti-white and anti-American remarks by the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., Obama's former minister.

The outcome of the April 22 primary will be determined in large measure by how well Clinton can retain the support of white working-class men, who have been a key part of her winning coalition in other states - and who support her so far in Pennsylvania polls.

Many voters interviewed in New Castle last week said they were comfortable with Clinton, a familiar figure whose husband's presidency is remembered fondly. They were less certain of Obama.

With the exception of the Virginia and Wisconsin primaries in mid-February, Clinton has enjoyed a decisive edge among working-class white men, estimated at nearly a quarter of the nation's electorate.

In the last two big-state primaries, on March 4, Clinton bested Obama among non-college-educated white men by 35 points in Ohio and by 20 in Texas, according to exit polls.

Many Democrats, particularly the superdelegates who are expected to decide the nomination, are keeping an anxious eye on the trends, because working-class white voters could be crucial in battleground states in the general election, and the candidate able to win them could be the stronger nominee.

Blue-collar men, the key to Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal coalition, became "Reagan Democrats" in the 1980s, putting Republican Ronald Reagan in the White House. Bill Clinton won them back in 1992, but two years later they were the "angry white males" who gave the GOP control of Congress.

"The blue-collar vote has been up for grabs for 30 years, and it is the bulk of the Democratic base in Pennsylvania," said James Lee, president of Susquehanna Polling & Research in Harrisburg.

His polls and surveys by other organizations have found Clinton leading by double digits in Pennsylvania, in part because of her advantage among white working-class men.

Analysts say that, so far, Obama's core message of a "new politics" has not resonated as much with working-class voters as Clinton's focus on economic issues such as job losses due to foreign trade and the high cost of health care.

"Some of it is familiarity with her," said Mike Young, a pollster in Hershey. "The unknown is to what extent is there a racial component to his problems with white working-class voters."

Obama started a six-day bus tour of Pennsylvania on Friday aimed at introducing himself. He has been talking more about economic policy, and his TV ads in the state use blue-collar imagery.

New Castle, a shrunken steel town of 26,000 about an hour northwest of Pittsburgh, is as good a place as any to gauge the task Obama faces. Though it's home to the famous Zambelli Fireworks Manufacturing Co., health care is now the main industry, and concern about the economic downturn runs high.

A handful of Democrats said they preferred neither Clinton nor Obama and probably would vote for Republican Sen. John McCain in the fall.

"What didn't you like about the Clintons - peace or prosperity?" asked Chris DeJoseph, owner of a small party-supply business who was part of the breakfast crowd at Hudson Lunch, a diner downtown on East Washington Street. "It's about time we come into the 21st century and elect a woman president."

Gary Pezzuolo, 50, a contractor who builds commercial and residential projects, finds the economy scary. Diesel for his three dump trucks costs about $4.25 a gallon.

"It's hard keeping up when your fuel costs double and your rates are the same as they were 10 years ago," said Pezzuolo, who is also a supervisor in nearby Mahoning Township. He said he was inclined toward Hillary Clinton because things were good under President Clinton.

As for Obama, Pezzuolo said, "I don't think he has the experience to get us out of every mess we're in."

Many people said they were wary of Obama.

"I don't care for him - I think he's arrogant," said Vito Yeropoli, 34, an account manager with a wireless-phone company. "I like Hillary. When you ask her a question about a problem, you get a plan. She'll give some kind of a solution."

Obama, he said, talks theoretically.

Yeropoli also was put off by Wright's comments, which he called "hate speech."

John Paolone slid into a corner booth at Hudson's presided over by Richard Christopher, a former mayor and current Democratic county chairman.

"I can't understand it. He keeps spouting 'change, change, change,' " Paolone said. "What's he going to change? Underwear? I don't get this guy. . . . He's got all these people mesmerized, like a cult figure."

"Like we'll all hold hands and sing 'Kumbaya,' " agreed Angelo Ginocchi, 62, a retired state worker. He said he would to vote for Clinton, based in part on Gov. Rendell's endorsement and a belief that Obama was too young.

While the diner crowd was predominantly for Clinton, other residents eating dinner at a church voiced greater support for the GOP.

Several dozen people gathered in the basement of St. Nicholas Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Church for a potluck supper after a service Wednesday night.

Bob Dado, a registered Democrat who intends to vote for McCain in the fall, said he was glad the two Democrats were still fighting.

"I hope they knock each other out," said Dado, 58, a teacher. "I was a die-hard Democrat until Reagan."

Jim Krawchyk, who became a truck driver after retiring as a steelworker six years ago, said he would vote for a Republican presidential candidate for the first time this fall and considered McCain a war hero.

"Hillary and her husband put us on the fast track with NAFTA, and the jobs went away," said Krawchyk, 71. "Obama, he's still wet behind the ears, with a runny nose. He needs some paper towels."

St. Nicholas' pastor, the Rev. Richard Salley, said he was impressed by Obama's early career as a community organizer in poor and working-class neighborhoods in Chicago.

"People say you have to vote for the one with experience," Salley said. "What experience does Hillary have? Tell me. What?"

To see a video of interviews with voters in New Castle, Pa., go to http://go.philly.com

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