Republican Representative James C. Cleveland still holds a slight edge over Grandmaison, most observers say, but the contest is close. Grandmaison has sought to characterize the conservative Clevelend as a pro-business and anti-consumer candidate, frequently pointing to Cleveland's vote to remove controls of gas prices as a prime example

Connecticut--The image of Republican Lowell Weicker, the state's junior Senator, as a political maverick who votes his conscience despite party labels has enhanced his chances for re-election over a formidable Democratic opponent, Gloria Schaffer. Schaffer, Connecticut's secretary of state, is considered handicapped in her bid for the Senate by the presence of one woman already holding statewide office, Democratic Governor Ella Grasso. Weicker's acceptability to liberals should undercut Schaffer's base of support, and his unique appeal to both the right and the left should insure his return to the Senate.

Rhode Island--The Democratic party has dominated statewide elections here in recent years, but a bitter and divisive primary struggle for the Senate nomination may open the door to former Governor John Chaffee, an unsuccessful Republican Senate candidate in 1974. Richard P. Lorber won the September 14 Democratic primary by defeating controversial Governor Philip Noel with a margin of only 100 votes. Noel's refusal to support Lorber and his threats to challenge the primary results has injected a personal squabble into an otherwise issue-oriented campaign.

Both candidates have stressed their stances on the issues, and some original ideas have emerged during the campaign. Lorber presents the electorate with an elaborate plan for preserving the nation's ethnic neighborhoods (remember Carter's infamous "ethnic purity" remark?). His plan includes the establishment of neighborhood court systems where citizens could argue their own cases in minor legal matters. Lorber's platform also calls for a freeze on public housing rents and a property tax freeze for senior citizens living on a low or fixed income.

Chafee fits the traditional mold of the Northeastern liberal Republican. He favors national health insurance, but also supports plans to drill for oil off the New England costs and a freeze on real estate taxes. His position as Secretary of the Navy under former president Nixon might hurt Chafee's chances, especially because the closing of Rhode Island navy bases in 1973--after Chafee left the government--seriously exacerbated the state's unemployment problems.

Despite Chafee's 20-point lead in October polls the overwhelming majority of registered Democrats in the state makes the race too close to call.

Maryland--Representative Paul Sarbanes, a Democrat, received invaluable public exposure during the impeachment hearings of the House Judiciary Committee, exposure that appears strong enough to catapult him to the other end of the Hill. Maryland voters sent the present incumbent, Republican J. Glenn Beall, to the Senate six years ago as a replacement for Joseph P. Tydings, a liberal Democrat considered by many as too aristocratic and aloof to appeal to ethnic, working-class voters in Baltimore. Sarbanes's Greek ancestry provides natural ties to these voters, while his Rhodes scholar background helps him among the intellectual chic of Washington's suburbs.

Sarbanes's chances are further enhanced by the native-son support he should get from his hometown of Salisbury in the conservative Eastern Shore area that strongly supported Beall against Tydings.

THE SOUTH

Florida--Lawton Chiles, the Democratic candidate who originated the "walking-the-length-of-the-state" campaign in 1970, is once again hiking through this state of swamps and resorts in search of votes. His election this time is much more of a certainty than it was last time when a bitterly divided state GOP failed to coalesce behind one of its founding fathers, former Representative William Cramer. Chiles' present Republican opponent, John L. Grady, a physician who ran for the Senate as an Independent in 1974, lacks the support of many Republican party regulars, who view him as an outsider.

Missouri--The airplane crash that killed Representative Jerry Litton just hours after he had captured the Democratic Senate nomination probably also dashed the Democrat's hopes to hold the seat occupied for so long by Stuart Symington. The candidacy of former Governor Warren E. Hearnes, the state committee's choice to replace Litton, is tainted by an investigation into corruption in his administration that produced no convictions but cast a long shadow of suspicion over him.

Hearnes's problems are compounded by the formidable qualities of his Republican opponent, John C. Danforth. Danforth built the modern Republican party in Missouri, nurturing its growth during his tenure as attorney general, when he was the only Republican official elected statewide. Heir to the Ralston-Purina fortune, Danforth projects a more youthful, personable image than his opponent. And in a race where the candidates differ only slightly on the issues, image could be the deciding factor.

Tennessee--One of the few incumbents facing a serious challenge, Republican Senator William Brock has encountered problems chiefly because of his campaign style. Brock's stuffy and aloof manner apparently suffers in a comparison with the folksy, at-east styles of his fellow Senator, Republican Howard Baker, and his Democratic opponent, James Sasser. Sasser banks his hopes for election on the lack of enthusiasm for Brock and on the coattails of Jimmy Carter, which are expected to be long through out the South.

Texas--Senator Lloyd Benson's brief and unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination may have damaged his chances for re-election at home. By shifting slightly to the left on some issues to appeal to a national constituency, Bentsen alienated much of the conservative support in the business community that helped him capture the seat in 1970. His support for an elimination of the oil depletion allowance for major oil companies also strained his ties to the business sector of his constituency. However, many Democrats are still cool to Bentsen because he unseated liberal Senator Ralph Yarborough in a 1970 Democratic primary.

Such new problems and old wounds provide an opportunity for an upset by Representative Alan Steelman, Bentsen's GOP challenger. However, Steelman has problems of his own. His voting record in the House stands out as quite moderate in comparison to his fellow Republicans in the state delegation. He has complicated matters by attacking Bentsen from the left by support the Equal Rights Amendment and liberalized abortion laws, and from the right, by favoring state right-to-work laws and opposing oil company divestiture. This tactic has in effect reproduced Bentsen's problem of fracturing the electorate.