For the past seven weeks, Penn for Hillary and Penn for Obama have competed for the votes of students across Penn's campus.
But with Penn overwhelmingly Obama-friendly -- 73 percent of students said they supported Illinois Sen. Barack Obama in a recent DP/CBS News poll - Penn for Hillary has pivoted its resources into the suburbs and the inner-city, where undecided voters abound.
"West Philadelphia is a hard area" for New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, said College junior Julie Siegel, spokeswoman for Penn for Hillary and a former DP Spin editor. As a result, she said, the group is allocating its resources to more competitive areas.
College senior David Helfenbein, Penn for Hillary co-chairman and co-founder, said that rather than "dorm-storming" efforts, the group has focused on targeting specific student groups on campus.
Recently, the group held forums and other events targeted at a number of groups, such as Wharton students and Nursing students.
The group says it has been working closely with the national campaign since September.
"The campaign has provided us with surrogates, helped us with events and has been strategizing with us," said College junior Annie Friedman, co-chairwoman of Penn for Hillary.
Siegel said Penn for Hillary has made itself open to the national campaign since the beginning, but had "no idea" Pennsylvania would play such a large role.
Siegel, Friedman and Helfenbein founded the group in April 2007, after each had worked with Clinton on a "personal level," Helfenbein said.
The close connection made between the group and the national campaign has been particularly evident since the race for Pennsylvania began.
The day after Clinton won the critical Ohio and Texas primaries, shifting the race toward Pennsylvania, Chelsea Clinton held a rally in Wynn Commons for Penn students.
Since then, Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton have both made appearances at Penn, and Penn for Hillary has played a role in organizing and hosting each time.
Tonight, all three Clintons will appear at the Palestra for the campaign's final rally before election day.
"We're incredibly excited that the Clintons chose Penn for their last campaign rally," said College freshman Patrick Bauer, vice chairman of Penn for Hillary and a volunteer for the national campaign downtown.
"Our get-out-the-vote front is focused on the rally," Helfenbein said. "We hope as many Penn students can go as possible."
Siegel said the decision to have the final Clinton rally at Penn was a personal victory for the group.
The Palestra rally "is a vote of confidence in us," she said.
