ERIE, Pa. -- The line of voters, all 2,000 of them, stretched from the doors of the Junker Center at Penn State's Behrend Campus down a hill, around a bend and almost into the lower parking lot.

With the sky a wash of azure and the ground dry, the fishing was nonetheless great for pamphleteers, T-shirt salesmen, clipboard-toting volunteer coordinators and, above all, would-be congressmen.

"Are you kidding? When I can shake 3,000 hands, I've gotta be there," said Tom Myers, one of four Democrats vying for the party nomination in the 3rd Congressional District.

The district, which stretches from Erie to Armstrong County, has been represented for 14 years by Republican Phil English. With President Bush's popularity rating at record lows, Democrats see an opening.

With thousands lining up to hear both Democratic presidential contenders, Sens. Barack Obama of Illinois and Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, congressional hopefuls see an irresistible temptation.

"Please vote for me when you vote for Barack," Mr. Myers told the faithful as they lined up to pass through security and enter the gym for Mr. Obama's town hall-style meeting yesterday. Mr. Myers has done the same at Clinton appearances. In fact, he had company yesterday.

"These events are extremely important for candidates who have limited budgets in terms of advertising," said Mike Waltner, another of the quartet of hopefuls vying to challenge Mr. English. "These events are kind of crucial for us to get our message out."

The Obama campaign, which has helped register thousands of new voters statewide, has also attracted potential backers for Mr. Waltner. Or Mr. Myers. Or, for that matter, Kathy Dahlkemper and Mike Foust. They weren't visibly working the line yesterday, but more than one or two of those waiting in it were sporting buttons with their names.

"I've got to say this is the biggest event I've seen," said Mr. Waltner. "Just waiting in line for tickets yesterday, I was able to meet a lot of voters."

Mr. Myers had to agree. "It's somewhat of a captive audience," he said. "And we get to share our views before he comes on and takes the stage."