GREENSBORO - There is an air of inevitability about state Sen. Kay Hagan. She has been recruited by the national party, her campaign literature includes the blessings of the governor, and she has earned her spurs at the legislature.

"I'm the one with experience," Hagan told a group of Elon University law students in Greensboro one night recently. "I'm the one with ability to beat Elizabeth Dole."

But Jim Neal, a Chapel Hill investment banker, is hoping to change the story line of the Democratic Senate primary on May 6. He is running a grass-roots, Internet-heavy campaign as a fresh, nonpolitical voice that represents real change.

"We present as candidates very radically different [choices]" Neal said in an interview. "Kay has been part of a process. She has been a politician."

So far, the Democratic Senate primary candidates have struggled to get attention -- overshadowed by a high-energy governor's race and a dynamic national presidential contest. The conventional wisdom among political insiders in Washington and Raleigh is that Dole, one of the best-known women in American politics, will be difficult to defeat.

A poll released recently suggested that more than half of likely North Carolina Democratic voters had not made up their minds on their choice to run against Dole, the Salisbury Republican who is seeking a second term. But among those who have decided, Hagan leads Neal by more than a 2-1 margin.

The Democratic Senate candidates portray Dole as an absentee senator. One Democratic activist, Hayes McNeill, even created a campaign button with a facetious AMBER Alert for Dole -- a bulletin for abducted children. But McNeill, like some other Democrats, has yet to be overly impressed by any of Dole's potential Democratic opponents.

"I don't think anybody likes her [Dole] much," said McNeill, a former Forsyth County Democratic chairman. "But the [Democrats] have not gotten any kind of visibility."

Sluggish start

Both candidates, but especially Neal, have been campaigning across the state. Both are hiring staff for their campaign headquarters -- Hagan in Greensboro and Neal in Durham. Both have hired consultants and have been busy raising money.

But with two months before the primary, there have been no TV or radio advertisements, no debates, not even any joint appearances.

From the beginning, North Carolina Democrats found it hard to jump-start the Senate campaign. They found it difficult to find someone to challenge Dole, a former federal transportation and labor secretary, former American Red Cross president and former presidential candidate.

Some of the state party's bigger names, including Gov. Mike Easley, Attorney General Roy Cooper and U.S. Rep. Brad Miller, took a pass on the race.

Both Neal and Hagan argue that the public has tired of Dole and is looking for a fresh voice. But Hagan and Neal are offering different appeals to voters.

Contrasting platforms

Neal talks about being an outsider. Hagan stresses her ability to operate the levers of government. Neal is running to Hagan's left, while Hagan is running as more of a centrist.

Both candidates oppose the war in Iraq. But Neal is calling for a cutoff of congressional funding, while Hagan is looking for a diplomatic effort to wind down the war. She does not favor a timetable for U.S. withdrawal.

Both want to expand health care. Neal is calling for a universal health-care plan, while Hagan likes the idea but wants to see how such a plan would be financed before backing it. Neal has said he would have voted against confirming Attorney General Michael Mukasey because of his position on torture, while Hagan said she did not know how she would vote.

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