Concluding that, "If LoPresti is a progressive, I'm a monkey's uncle," Gerstell charged that LoPresti had misrepresented his State Senate record to win over liberal voters and knock her out of the race and then switched back towards the right.

"He [LoPresti] started running like crazy for the gay vote" and began advocating positions that were "not at all in tune with what his previous positions had been," Gerstell said in an interview yesterday. "The LoPresti strategy was that he had to turn himself into more of a liberal."

"He went further to the left than he would have if I weren't there in order to get the endorsements." Gerstell said. Such a move, Gerstell said, was enough to "effectively deflate my candidacy."

"[Cambridge City Councillor] Alice Wolf is not going to endorse someone unless he is liberal," responded LoPresti campaign chairman Michael Matt.

Gerstell said that both candidates have flip-flopped on the issues, but said that the Travaglini grassroots claim "is at least credible. What you got in LoPresti is someone who relates to lobbyists and not to people," she said.

Matt said that Travaglini's efforts at portraying LoPresti as inaccessible, unrepresentative, and a tool of lobbyists reflected his desperation in running against an incumbent "who has a great record, who has all sorts of support."

"You don't get that kind of support being those things," Matt said.

Although Gerstell and other analysts say they expect LoPresti to retain his seat because of heavy liberal support, Monks claimed an upset is in the making. He said blue-collar voters in East Boston would go heavily to Travaglini, creating the margin of victory.

"Come Thursday, we're going to surprise some people," Monks predicted.