CONTROL OF HOUSE AT STAKE.

Byline: Jim Drinkard Associated Press 

Republicans, led by House Speaker Newt Gingrich, closed out the election campaign Monday with a final push for their first back-to-back House majority in 66 years. ``We're going to keep control of the House,'' Gingrich declared.

Democrats pressed their attacks on the GOP freshmen who came aboard in the Gingrich wave two years ago. But on Election Eve, dozens of races remained too close to call.

In Spokane, Wash., former House Speaker Tom Foley whipped up supporters at a rally for Judy Olson, a wheat farmer who hoped to knock off Republican George Nethercutt, who beat Foley two years ago. Nethercutt appeared far safer than a few weeks ago.

Gingrich, at a campaign event in Smyrna, Ga., contended that his party could actually pad its 236-198 majority. There is one independent in the 435-member House.

A key to Republican hopes is the South, where GOP candidates appeared likely to capture districts left open by Democratic retirements in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas.

Democrats, looking to win back the majority they lost two years ago, put their faith in knocking off the weakest of the GOP freshmen seeking re-election.

Considered most likely to lose: Reps. Michael Flanagan of Illinois, Fred Heineman of North Carolina, Jim Longley of Maine, Dick Chrysler of Michigan, Daniel Frisa of New York, Andrea Seastrand of California and Jim Bunn of Oregon.

It would take a net shift of 18 seats to the Democrats to transfer control of the House.

But Republicans believed - and polls seemed to bear them out - that the bulk of the freshmen had effectively battled back against a two-prong assault by Democrats and organized labor. Jon Christensen in Nebraska and Phil English in Pennsylvania looked relatively safe, and Rep. J.D. Hayworth, R-Ariz., seemed to have pulled back from the brink of defeat.

A few veterans in each party were on the watch list, including firebrand conservative Rep. Bob Dornan, R-Calif., and Reps. Harold Volkmer, D-Mo., and George Brown, D-Calif. Democratic freshmen Ken Bentsen in Texas and Mike Ward in Kentucky also faced tough opposition, as well as second-termer Elizabeth Furse in Oregon and three-term Rep. Bill Orton in Utah.

A late ABC News tracking poll gave Democrats the edge when likely voters were asked which party they planned to vote for in congressional races. But asked their preference if Clinton holds the White House for the Democrats, 51 percent said in that case they would want a Republican House.

Republicans vowed that, if returned to power, they would continue to shrink the size of government, cut taxes, balance the budget and restrain federal regulation. They freely used the ``liberal'' label against Democrats.

Democrats pushed an agenda they called ``Families First,'' which also included balancing the budget, but promised modest government help in the areas of child care, education and health care.

House candidates had raised $374 million for their campaigns by Oct. 16, according to the Federal Election Commission, a 27 percent increase over the comparable figure two years ago. The national political parties spent millions more on advertising in dozens of the hardest-fought races, as spending restraints melted away because of court decisions.

But in the end the same factors helping President Clinton - a healthy economy and a calming of the anti-government fervor of 1994 - also appeared to buoy congressional incumbents.