WHEN Tammy Duckworth’s army helicopter was shot down in Iraq, it took her eight days to regain consciousness. She asked in hospital why her feet hurt, not knowing that her legs had been blown off by a rocket-propelled grenade.

Two years on she looks the picture of health from the waist up and has a wide smile and an engaging laugh. One of her legs is only 2½in long; the other ends at the thigh. As she whirls around the campaign trail in her wheelchair, Duckworth has become a symbol of hope for Democrats in next month’s mid-term elections.

Polls show her just a point behind her Republican opponent, a lawyer, in the battle for Congress. The prosperous outlying suburb of Chicago which Duckworth is contesting, has been die-hard Republican for decades and is reputed to have more churches per square mile than any district in America.

In a normal year Duckworth, 38, would be trounced. Tax cuts, gay marriage, abortion: these would be the issues dominating the campaign. But this election, more than anything, is about the war in Iraq, a subject the wounded pilot says she knows “a little something about”.

“My injuries in Iraq were definitely important to my decision to run,” she said. “When I came home, I realised Congress was not listening to the generals, the troops fighting in Iraq and the wounded soldiers coming home.”

She wears an American flag on her lapel and says she was proud to serve in Iraq, even though she thought the invasion was a mistake. One of the “fighting Democrats”, as the Iraq veterans standing for election are called, she describes herself as a “fiscal conservative and social moderate”, a decidedly non-loony left formula.

Duckworth agrees “absolutely” with General Sir Richard Dannatt, the British Army chief, that the presence of coalition troops is exacerbating the conflict. “We’re attracting more people to terrorism than ever before. We really need to think about drawing down,” she told The Sunday Times. “I want the secretary of defence to come before Congress and tell us how many Iraqis are fully trained. If two guys can do traffic control in Kirkuk, I want to bring two Americans home.”

With 74 killed so far, October has emerged as the deadliest month for American forces in Iraq since November 2004 — “when I was shot down”, Duckworth pointed out. Her remarkable personal story vexes Peter Roskam, her opponent. “She’s a female and disabled and can hurl insults at him that he couldn’t or wouldn’t respond to in kind,” said one frustrated Republican activist.

Yet in many ways Duckworth’s ultra-moderate centrist campaign is typical of those being fought in marginal seats across the country, in which Republicans are running shy of mentioning the war while Democrats are placing its bungling centre-stage.

In a radio debate with Duckworth last week, Roskam was keen to play down their differences on the war. “My opponent and I both say we have to ask the administration difficult questions about Iraq,” he said. “I’m in favour of a timely withdrawal of our forces.” Duckworth shot back: “I’m so glad you’re beginning to repeat what I’ve said all along, Peter.”

It has been a general rule of these elections that, in the words of Kellyanne Conway, the Republican pollster, “If you’re a war on Iraq voter, you tend to lean heavily Democrat. If you’re a war on terror voter, you are much closer to the Republicans.”

The Republicans’ inability to switch the focus away from the increasingly bad news from Iraq has led to predictions that they could lose at least 20 seats in the House of Representatives — only 15 are necessary for control of the House to pass to the Democrats.

Karl Rove, President George W Bush’s top adviser, has been “inexplicably upbeat” about Republican prospects, according to The Washington Post, insisting they will lose no more than eight to 10 seats. He also expects the Republicans to hold on to the Senate, where the Democrats need six seats to take control.

One source of his confidence is the huge financial advantage enjoyed by Republicans. Inexperience led Duckworth to blow most of her war chest on responding to attack advertisements early on. By last week she was down to her last $200,000 — a paltry sum by American standards — while her opponent had $1.5m in the bank.

“If Tammy Duckworth is even in the polls but is at an 8-1 disadvantage in funds with three weeks to go, she can kiss the election goodbye,” said a spokesman for the Republican congressional committee.

However, Duckworth is bringing stars into her campaign such as Barack Obama, the charismatic local senator who appeared with her in a television commercial. Tomorrow Bill Clinton is to fly in for a fundraiser.

So far Duckworth’s personal life seems beyond reproach. The worst she can say about her much-appreciated husband is: “He annoys me. I annoy him. He chews gum with his mouth open. I leave my legs lying around the floor.”

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