WATERVILLE -- He may be down in the polls with a week until the election, but Democratic U.S. Rep. Tom Allen sees a path to victory in the Maine U.S. Senate race.

At a voter registration rally in Waterville Tuesday morning, Allen sought to align his fate with Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama under the promise for "change," while casting his opponent, Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, as a backer of "the wrong direction" under George W. Bush and John McCain.

Allen said he would support Obama's policy proposals as a U.S. senator, fighting to "make life better for the middle class in Maine."

"If you want change, you have to vote for it," Allen said to a crowd of about 60 people who were packed tightly into Obama campaign headquarters on Common Street. "Susan Collins is not change; I am."