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Gillibrand getting campaign help, having trouble in the polls

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is getting some fundraising help from a former Obama employee.

To help her gain support in a possible primary challenge from former Tennessee Congressman Harold Ford, Jr., former Obama Campaign Manager David Plouffe will be the featured speaker at a breakfast fundraiser in New York City at the end of the month.

Meanwhile, Ford has been meeting with voters and Democratic leaders across the state as he decides if he'll run for the senate seat.

The latest Marist poll shows 44% of Democrats say they support U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand as their choice to face the Republican challenger in November.

27% are behind Ford and 4% say they are backing union leader and activist Jonathan Tasini.

However, this still leaves 25% of Democrats unsure.

Analysts say Gillibrand gets the majority of her support from New York's suburbs and upstate, but she is not fairing well in New York City, where more than half of the Democratic vote will come from in the primary.