Four Shenango Valley leaders have thrown support behind surging Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ed Rendell, according to news releases issued Thursday by Rendell's campaign.

A statewide poll released Thursday showed, in the last six months Rendell has narrowed the gap between him and his opponent in the primary, Robert P. Casey Jr., from 10 percentage points to 1 point.

A quarter of the registered Democrats polled were undecided, down from 34 percent in October.

Farrell Mayor William Morocco, Sharon Mayor David Ryan, Sharon council President Fred Hoffman and Hermitage commissioner President William Scanlon backed Rendell in four nearly identical news releases.

"I am endorsing Ed Rendell for governor today because he has displayed a real compassion for people and an understanding of the issues that affect Pennsylvanians," said Morocco, who has coordinated Rendell's Mercer County campaign along with former county Democratic Party Chairman Dick Miller of Greenville.

"Farrell is a distressed community, dependent on new economic development initiatives. Ed's thoughtful and practical plans to revitalize Pennsylvania's communities are essential for our community and our state's future," Morocco added.

Ryan, Hoffman and Scanlon said they are endorsing Rendell because he "is the only candidate who has ever created a single job, cut a single tax, put a single police officer on the streets or taken a single criminal off them." All four leaders touted Rendell's plans to "revitalize our state's mid-sized and smaller communities, protect our communities and reform our education system," the releases said.

"I am enormously pleased that (they) have endorsed my campaign," said Rendell, the former mayor of Philadelphia.

"I am confident that with (their) help, my campaign will be successful and together we can make the change our state needs to make it great once again," Rendell added.

Everyone isn't lining behind Rendell, however. Some believe Casey, the state auditor general, has plenty of support in Mercer County and can hold off the surging Rendell statewide.

Mark Longietti of Farrell, a Democrat State Committeeman who chairs the group's Northwest Caucus, said Casey received "overwhelming support" from the state committee and regional caucus earlier this year.

Longietti, who says he along with county Democratic Chairman Robert Lark, is a Casey backer, said Casey has also received strong support from teachers and blue-collar workers. "And many people in this area will remember his father (former Gov. Robert P. Casey) coming to the (Shenango) valley to save Sharon Steel," Longietti added.

Rendell is the slated guest for a luncheon in Hermitage at Hickory Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6166 on April 30. It will be his second campaign stop in the valley in two months.

Casey has yet to make a campaign stop in Mercer County this year.