Barack Obama will open his campaign war chest to fund offices and staffers in Tennessee.

The campaign closed its operations in the state after the February primary, leaving local efforts to volunteers and the state Democratic Party. But attorney Jerry Martin says the campaign will soon open an office in Nashville, and likely others in Memphis, Knoxville and Chattanooga.

Martin was named State Director for the campaign during last week’s Democratic convention. He says he’s not worried by polls that show Obama far behind in Tennessee.

“If you’re a newly registered voter, you never get polled. So I think that the race is much tighter than the polls suggest because of this influx of voters.”

Obama and John McCain will both be in Nashville for the presidential debate at Belmont University on October 7.