The rain-drenched crowds that lined East Boston's streets on Sunday for the annual Columbus Day Parade received not only Tootsie Rolls from the passing floats, but also a healthy dose of hand-shakes.

As the Nov. 3 election day approaches, both Massachusetts candidates for governor, Acting Governor A. Paul Cellucci and Attorney General L. Scott Harshbarger '64, were trying to win swing votes.

Although the parade was threatened by bad weather, both candidates walked the parade route up Bennington Street, shaking hands with residents.

The governor's race has started to heat up in the last few weeks as the candidates have attacked each other in debates and on the air-waves.

Last week's debate in Lowell between the candidates and Cellucci's recent advertising blitz attacking Harshbarger indicate the campaign is getting personal.

While Sunday's parade was free of verbal sparring between the candidates, yesterday's Columbus Day Parade in Revere heated up with Harshbarger attacking Cellucci's personal debt of $70;000 in pre-parade comments.

"He continues to maintain that he is the fiscally responsible one. I find that claim to be somewhat shallow and maybe Joe Malone was right, maybe Paul doesn't know how to handle money," Harshbarger said.

Martin A. Linsky, a lecturer in public policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, said Harshbarger's comment reflected a growing sense of concern within the candidate's organization.

"Harshbarger is starting to feel more desperate," Linsky said.

Both candidates posted easy victories in their Sept. 15 primary races. Harshbarger defeated Patricia McGovern by a comfortable 20 percent margin while Cellucci beat Joseph D. Malone '76 by 16 percentage points.

Although Cellucci is the current frontrunner, his lead is tenuous at best. In a poll taken two weeks by the Boston Herald and WCVB-TV, 48 percent of voters supported Cellucci, with 38 percent backing Harshbarger.

However, in a poll taken by The Boston Globe and WBZ-TV on October 9, Cellucci's lead slipped to 6 percentage points. The poll has a 5 percent margin of error, putting the race in a virtual dead-heat.

On the Trail

Among the crowds of veteran groups massing into formation and children with face paint, a small brownstone house stood out on Bennington Street with its colorful banners and masses of people wearing Italian flag buttons. Joe Cinserali, a six-month volunteer for the Cellucci campaign, had converted the home into the Cellucci parade headquarters.

Cellucci has an even more immediate connection with the East Boston community because it is his grandmother's birthplace. While Cellucci began the day with a bowl of lasagna, he does not need to worry about holding onto his Italian base.

"Italians will stick together politically...You can't underestimate the Italian voters," said Glenn S. Koocher '71, a Cambridge political analyst.

Cellucci's focus now seems to be capturing the independent swing voters who hold the key to a November victory.

"I think this election will be won or lost on the independent [voters]," said Emanuel G. Serra, a First Suffolk District state representative and Cellucci supporter.

Cellucci is trying to swing voters by continuing to hammer away at Harshbarger as a tax-and-spend liberal. Even in his comments on the sidewalks of Bennington Street, he continued the theme he used during the Oct. 5 Lowell debate.

"I think Scott Harshbarger is a riskyproposition for Massachusetts...Scott Harshbargeris going to spend the taxpayer's money," Celluccisaid.

Cellucci emphasized that Harshbarger's desireto increase funding is not countered by spendingcuts.

"He doesn't have an answer. He's going to raisetaxes," Cellucci said.

However, Cellucci's criticism received a blowwhen fellow Democrat Thomas M. Finneran, thefinancially conservative State Speaker of theHouse, fully endorsed Harshbarger this Thursday.

"It's a tremendous boost because of the wayCellucci is trying to portray Scott as atax-and-spend liberal," said Ed Cafasso, aHarshbarger spokesperson.

While Harshbarger has received endorsementsfrom over a hundred Democratic lawmakers includingSen. Edward M. Kennedy '54-'56 (D-Mass.) and VicePresident Al Gore '69, Finneran's endorsement wasnotable not only because of Finneran'sconservative financial views but also because ofhis earlier comments.

In a post-primary party unity breakfast onSept. 16, Finneran supported Democraticcandidates, but was cryptic in his comments onHarshbarger.

"The question is, 'Is the Democratic Partygoing to lurch to the left?'..We win when we stayin the middle and when we stay sane...If you goloony left, you lose," Finneran told The BostonGlobe.

However, in a press conference last Thursday,Finneran unabashedly endorsed Harshbarger, callinghim "a strong and effective leader forMassachusetts."

Finneran also said he was comfortable withHarshbarger's sense of financial responsibility.

"In my conversations with [Harshbarger], I havereached a level of comfort and assurance thatScott won't lose sight of the paramountresponsibility of fiscal prudence and fiscaldiscipline," Finneran said in a statement.

Harshbarger's campaign emphasized thatFinneran's comments were not a warning toHarshbarger, but rather campaign advice for thewhole party.

"The Democratic party isn't going to win bytaking liberal views...The Democratic party is notgoing to win [the election] by showing up,"Cafasso said.

Cafasso also stressed that Finneran neverassociated Harshbarger with the "loony left."

However, Finneran's comments also might beindicative that Harshbarger's zealousness rubs theparty faithful the wrong way.

"Finneran wanted to send a message," saidKoocher, the Cambridge political analyst. "It's anendorsement that says you've screwed some of yourfriends, prosecuted your allies, and sometimes youtake your friends for granted."

Koocher explained that Speakers of the Househave historically been more centrist than thelegislature, balancing out the House's radicalelements. Finneran has not altered from the mold,especially in his conservative financial policies.

"Finneran has provided the adult supervisionwhen the legislation has loomed left," Koochersaid.

However, the internal party politics do notseem to be resonating with average voters, evenwith the crucial swing voter block.

"I'm still debating who to vote for. It seemsreal close to me. [Finneran's endorsement] doesn'taffect me," said John Taylor, a Central Squareresident.

Finneran's comments also might have beenaffected by poll results showing that swingindependent voters are leaning towards Republicansin state races.

The poll of 400 likely voters conducted earlylast week by The Boston Globe and WBZ-TV showedthat state races for attorney general, treasurerand secretary of state are closer than expectedbecause of the Republican leanings of independentvoters.

As the campaign approached its final weeks,Cellucci inaugurated an ad campaign attackingHarshbarger as too inexperienced for the job.

Cellucci supporters were adamant that the adcampaign illuminated key differences between thecandidates.

"He's not saying your mother wears combatboots. He's pointing out philosophicaldifferences," said Cellucci campaign worker MarkRotondo.

The Harshbarger campaign was quick to accuseCellucci's advertising campaign of deception andeven lies.

"He's distorted the issues...He's lied aboutScott's stand on financial matters," Cafasso said.

Harshbarger's campaign feels the ads areindicative of the weakness of Cellucci's ownrecord.

"He does nothing except coast on the economicpower [of Massachusetts.]...What you're seeing isan incumbent who's afraid to run on his record,"Cafasso said.

Material from the Associated Press was usedin this article.CrimsonM. Douglas O'MalleySMILING IN THE RAIN Acting GovernorA. PAUL CELLUCCI attends Columbus Day parade inEast Boston.