Maryland delegates are leaving the Republican National Convention fired up, but some acknowledged their greatest value in coming weeks could be providing help in states, including Virginia, where polls suggest a closer race.

"Three points in Maryland isn't as important as three points in Virginia or three points in Pennsylvania," said Don Murphy, a former state delegate and leader of the Maryland delegation. "We will continue to be a donor state until we prove we are competitive."

If Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) wins Maryland, Murphy said, it will mean the election nationally is a blowout. He said activists in Maryland are awaiting word on how they may best assist the campaign in other states.

Some prominent Republicans, including former Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) and Anne Arundel County Executive John R. Leopold (R), have already traveled to other states or have scheduled appearances.

In 2004, Democrat John F. Kerry carried Maryland by 13 percentage points over George W. Bush. Democrats maintain a 2-to-1 advantage in voter registration over Republicans in the state, and neither party has invested heavily in recent presidential elections.

Maryland GOP Chairman James Pelura said he is hardly willing to concede his state after this week, however, citing polls that show the race somewhat tighter than in 2004.

"I'm focused on Maryland," Pelura said, suggesting that closing poll numbers could force Obama to defend the state, detracting attention from more traditional battlegrounds.

Last night we all gathered in the Xcel Energy center to witness what would be an historic evening. I thought I was prepared for what I was about to see, but no preparation in the world could get me ready for the exhilaration of yesterday's events.

I could spend a couple of pages talking about each of the speakers, but we need to talk about what last night was all about. First, the Republican party has never had a woman as a Vice Presidential candidate and that in and of itself was history! However, Sarah Palin came out with the veracity, energy and resolve that a Vice President must have. And yet, even with her pointed comments about the opposition and all out attack on the lack of executive experience that the other ticket has, you found yourself liking her. Why is this? Because she has got that ability to argue with you, show you that she is right and make you like her the whole time!

Before her speech, there was a lot of speculation as to whether she could stand up to the pressure of being in the national spotlight and assume the #2 position in the government, but I think that even the Democrats have to acknowledge that whether you like her or not, she showed the world that she is here and she is here to stay and govern.

As for her speaking ability, she has a keen hold on her voice that resonates the strength of a governor, former mayor, and most importantly, the mother of five beautiful children. Her confidence is that of a person who knows that they are right. You know what I mean? She is able to talk with total disregard to the naysayers because she knows that she is able to assume this awesome responsibility..

Republican congressman Wayne T. Gilchrest broke ranks with his party yesterday and endorsed Democrat Frank Kratovil as the candidate he thinks should replace him in Congress in the 1st District.

The endorsement came about seven months after Gilchrest lost a bitter Republican primary to State Sen. Andy Harris in the Eastern Shore district that also includes part of Anne Arundel County.

Today at a press conference on the City Dock in Annapolis, Kratovil, the Queen Anne County state's attorney, said Gilchrest's endorsement says as much about Harris as it does about Kratovil's campaign. He used the event to characterize Harris as an ultra-conservative who, as a congressman, would choose his party line over the interests of his district.

Harris's campaign, however, dismissed Gilchrest's endorsement as unsurprising. Gilchrest and Harris have not met or even talked by phone since the primary. Harris' aides said they had been expecting Gilchrest's endorsement of Kratovil for weeks and attempted to use Gilchrest's endorsement to paint Kratovil as representative of the old guard in Congress that needs to be changed.

Gilchrest said made his decision like he has made all his decisions in Congress, many of which crossed party lines. He said he decided to support Kratovil after probing the issues and weighing the integrity of both men.

-- William Wan

One Maryland delegate to the Republican National Convention was reminiscing yesterday morning about past ties to the presidential nominee -- of the Democratic party.

As a member of the Hawaii legislature in the 1970s, Anne Arundel County Executive John R. Leopold (R) said he represented a district in Honolulu that included the home of Sen. Barack Obama's grandparents, where the future presidential hopeful lived.

Leopold was -- and remains to this day -- an ardent door-knocker. During his four years in the Hawaii House and four years in its Senate, he said he probably visited Obama's grandparents' home at least three times.

While he has no recollection of meeting them, Leopold said he remembers the high-rise in which the family lived.

"I can't know absolutely that I met them," Leopold said in an interview. "The likelihood is I did."

Leopold said it is also possible he met Obama himself, whose school was in Leopold's legislative district.

Leopold's tenure in the Hawaii legislature ended in 1978. He was first elected in 1982 to the Maryland House of Delegates, which he left in 2006 upon his election as Anne Arundel County executive.

Leopold laughed when asked if his ties to Obama made him feel any more fondly about the Democratic nominee.

"No," he said. "This is business. It's not personal."

ST. PAUL -- The tone at a Maryland delegation breakfast this morning seemed dialed back, in keeping with the spirit of today's GOP convention. But several speakers sang the praises of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R), the recently named running mate of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

Louis Pope, a Maryland delegate who is a member of the Republican National Committee, related how he and other members of the RNC's rules committee were tearing up in joy last week as they took a break in their proceedings and watched the Palin announcement on television.

"It's really unreal, thinking two days earlier, she was shooting caribou in Alaska," said Pope, who praised Palin's family and conservative credentials. "I think it's phenomenal, what John McCain did."

The focus of the breakfast was mostly housekeeping and updates on how Gustav is affecting the convention.

Among those offering tips was Don Murphy, a former state delegate who is leading the delegation. Delegates should be careful about what they say to the media and realize cameras are everywhere, Murphy said.

"Does the name President George Allen ring a bell?" Murphy asked, referring to the former Virginia senators's "macaca" comment that doomed his political career. "No."