GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Republican presidential candidates John McCain and Mitt Romney brought their campaigns to the solidly Republican western side of Michigan yesterday, one day after New Hampshire primary voters left Mr. Romney, a Michigan native, with another second-place finish.

Yesterday he showed why he considers his home state to be friendly territory, as a crowd greeted him outside Olga's Kitchen on Wealthy Street in East Grand Rapids with cheers of "We Love You, Mitt" and "President Romney."

Both men plunged into enthusiastic crowds to shake hands with supporters in a campaign event leading up to the GOP primary on Tuesday.

At the Gerald R. Ford International Airport, Mr. McCain's event was as organized as a convention: Red, white, and blue streamers, confetti blown into the air above the crowd of several hundred at just the right moment, and the crowd cheer-ing as instructed, "Mac is back!"

Mr. McCain exulted in his victory in the New Hampshire primary the previous day.

"We won New Hampshire, we'll win in Michigan, we'll win in South Carolina, and I'll be the next president of the United States, with your help," he said.

Mr. Romney, whose father was Michigan governor in the 1960s, promised to make the state's economy strong again.

"I campaigned right here with my dad time and time again when he ran for governor. I've watched with concern as I've seen Michigan go through a one-state recession. It's just not right," Mr. Romney said. "We need to have someone who cares very deeply about this state."

One of his supporters called out, "If you don't make it as president, come back here to Michigan and help us."

Recalling that he once aspired to be a car company executive, he said, "I think I can do more to help the car business and Michigan by becoming president than in the car business," Mr. Romney responded.

Mr. McCain's bid for the White House was given up for lost in the summer when the Iraq war was on a downward spiral and he was one of the few sticking with President Bush's Iraq policy.

"If we had done what the Democrats wanted and set a date to withdraw our troops and surrender, al-Qaeda would be telling the world today they defeated the United States," Mr. McCain said.

In addition to promising to rein in spending, which he blamed for the declining economy and loss of confidence in government, he touched on Michigan's loss of manufacturing jobs.

"I'm aware of the economic difficulties in the state of Michigan. There are tough times in the heartland of America," he said. "Some of the jobs that have left the state of Michigan are not coming back."

Mr. McCain vowed to create job retraining programs through the community colleges, and called for making the Bush tax cuts permanent.

Both candidates are planning stops in the state through Tuesday's primary election except for today, when a televised debate will take place in South Carolina.

The two men, along with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and others, are competing in Michigan's Republican primary.

Michigan is losing half of its 60 delegates at the national GOP nominating convention in August as punishment for moving up its primary to before Feb. 5.

Many Democrats are likely to sit out the primary because Illinois Sen. Barack Obama and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards withdrew from the ballot because the state flouted the rules with its early primary schedule. Only New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton will appear on the ballot. The Democratic National Committee has voted to decertify all of Michigan's delegates to the national convention.

Among the spectators at Mr. McCain's event were Navy veteran Shawn McCabe, 49, and his wife, Kathryn, 40, who said they supported Mr. McCain in 2000 - and had the "McCain2000.com" sign to prove it - and then supported Democrat John Kerry in 2004.

"We're [Illinois Sen. Barack] Obama supporters too," Mr. McCabe said. "We never liked Bush."

After the speech, Mr. McCabe said he heard what he wanted to hear from Mr. McCain about his determination to stamp out pork-barrel spending. But Mrs. McCabe was disappointed Mr. McCain emphasized the war on terror and said so little about the environment.

"I don't like the whole fear thing the Republican Party has been brewing," Mrs. McCabe said. "It's important, but I don't want to spend all my time talking about it."

Independent pollster Ed Sarpolus, who is based in Lansing, said his polling, which he does for media organizations, shows three front-runners, including Mr. Huckabee, at around 20 percent of the vote, with about one third of the voters undecided.

He said Michigan should be fertile territory for Mr. Romney, but he isn't demonstrating passion. "He's perceived as Bush-lite," Mr. Sarpolus said.

Clark VerHulst, government teacher at Rogers High School, said he brought about 110 students to the McCain event. He said the experience interests them in the political process more than textbooks do.

"I tell them to bring a camera because in 1992 we had a little-known candidate come to our school named Bill Clinton and the students got to meet him," Mr. VerHulst said.

Brenda Johnson of Grand Rapids, 49, who showed up for the Romney event, said she likes Mr. Romney but is undecided. She's looking forward to a Romney-Obama matchup.

"There's never been a likeable Democrat before and I think Obama is that likable Democrat," she said. "I'm hoping it's Romney versus Obama."

Contact Tom Troy at:tomtroy@theblade.com or 419-724-6058.

First Published January 10, 2008, 2:51 p.m.