HARRISBURG -- John Morganelli, a district attorney from eastern Pennsylvania, is trying to go where no elected Democrat has gone before: into the state attorney general's office.

But Mr. Morganelli, the five-term prosecutor from Northampton County, will have a tough time reaching his goal because he's challenging a popular incumbent, Republican Tom Corbett of Shaler.

Mr. Morganelli has run for attorney general in the past, but lost in primaries. This year, it appears Mr. Morganelli has the Democratic race to himself.

But can he beat someone with statewide name recognition like Mr. Corbett? State Democratic party spokesman Abe Amoros thinks so.

"We think this is going to be a big year for Democrats," he said. "As the [poll] numbers for President Bush are sagging, there is a lot of enthusiasm among Democrats for the presidential race. We feel it will be a banner year for Democrats, from the White House to state offices."

Mr. Morganelli said in a phone interview Friday that he will outline four major issues for his campaign when he makes his official announcement in Harrisburg this week.

Even though Democrats have lost all the attorney general races since the office became elective in 1980, most races were close and he thinks he has a good chance.

"Republicans as a whole aren't viewed favorably by citizens," he said. "President Bush's approval level is low. [Former Sen.] Rick Santorum got trounced. I know I'm the underdog. That's OK. I've been the underdog before and won."

Corbett spokesman Kevin Harley said his boss will be tough to beat because he's delivered on all four promises he made after getting elected in 2004.

"He created the child predator unit, and as of this week we have arrested 120 child predators," he said. Mr. Corbett has also created an "elder abuse" unit to protect senior citizens from both physical and financial abuse.

"He created a public corruption unit," Mr. Harley said, which is investigating "Bonusgate," trying to determine if taxpayer-paid bonuses were paid to legislative employees for political work, which is illegal; he also arrested former Rep. Frank LaGrotta on ghost-employee charges and filed charges against former Rep. Jeff Habay.

Mr. Corbett has also expanded the drug strike force to arrest people making methamphetamine, crack cocaine and heroin, Mr. Harley said. Mr. Corbett needs to be re-elected if he plans to run for governor in 2010, as many political observers expect.

Because the attorney general deals with such high-profile issues, he's usually in the news more than the other two state row officers, auditor general and state treasurer.

But the current auditor general, Democrat Jack Wagner, has kept his name in the news with audits of some state agencies, such as his criticism of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency for its lavish bonuses to staffers.

Mr. Wagner, of the Beechview section of Pittsburgh, is running again and Democrats said he'll be difficult to defeat. He is anxious to keep his name before voters this year because he, too, is often mentioned as a candidate for governor in 2010.

The Democratic State Committee endorsed Wagner last weekend for a second term. "He is a class act all the way," said Mr. Amoros.

Republicans have had trouble finding a candidate to oppose Mr. Wagner, but now it appears it could be David Sanko, the chief operating officer for Bucks County, just north of Philadelphia.

Mr. Sanko has ties to several important GOP officials, such as former Gov. Mark Schweiker, Republican National Committeeman Bob Asher of Montgomery County and Bucks County GOP Chairman Harry Fawkes. Mr. Sanko also was Pennsylvania Emergency Agency director for a while under Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell.

GOP State Committee spokesman Mike Barley wouldn't confirm Mr. Sanko's possible candidacy, which was first reported last week by the Harrisburg-based online news service, Capitolwire.

"We expect to have a candidate and that person will be announcing shortly, perhaps [this] week," Mr. Barley said.

Finally, there is the office of state treasurer, currently occupied by Robin Wiessmann. She was named as a temporary appointment by Gov. Ed Rendell after the former treasurer, Robert Casey Jr., left office to win a campaign for U.S. Senate.

There could be three Democratic candidates for treasurer, all from eastern Pennsylvania: Rob McCord, a financial professional from Montgomery County; John Cordisco, Democratic chairman in Bucks County; and state Rep. Jennifer Mann of Lehigh County.

They can start circulating their ballot petitions on Jan. 23 and have until Feb. 12 to turn them in. On the GOP side, only one name has been mentioned for treasurer: Tom Ellis, a former Montgomery County commissioner.