U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, likely the next Republican majority leader in the Senate, campaigned Friday in Yakima for Mike McGavick, the Republicans' choice to try and unseat Sen. Maria Cantwell.

"Mike is the single best challenger we have in the country to beat a Democratic incumbent," McConnell told a small crowd of Republicans at a private reception and fundraiser at The Depot downtown.

McGavick, the former Safeco insurance chief executive, has brought several high-profile Republicans to the state recently, including Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman.

McConnell said Cantwell can be defeated if Republicans get out the vote because some polls put McGavick at only 4 or 5 percentage points behind in the race.

"This is going to be a dogfight," McConnell said. "It's winnable."

Republicans believe they can win the seat by improving voter turnout in Eastern Washington.

"If the 24 percent of people in Yakima County who didn't vote in the last election had voted we'd have a Republican governor," said John Tierney, chairman of the Yakima County Republican Party, referring to Gov. Chris Gregoire's narrow win over Republican Dino Rossi.

McGavick has been a frequent visitor to Yakima as a result. He said Cantwell has been ineffective and has unnecessarily angered Alaska by leading the Democrats' charge against drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. McGavick supports drilling as a way to increase supply and lower prices.

"Choosing to lead a fight against a neighbor is a mistake. We've been tied to Alaska for forever," McGavick said at the fundraiser.

McConnell, first elected in 1984, is the Republican Senate whip and is widely expected to be named leader if Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., retires as expected at the end of the year.