In many ways, the closing statements being made via 30-second TV spot in the race for governor echo the tone of the whole campaign since around Labor Day. Ahead of Tuesday's vote, the campaigns of Republican Tom Emmer and Democrat Mark Dayton are doubling down on their respective messages - and seeking to convince skeptics that each is a swell guy to boot.

In some political attacks during this year's legislative campaign, the attacking party has been the one that's gotten bloodied.

As returns come in, here are some of the key factors campaign vets will be watching in the governor's race.

There's one stark difference in recent polls that will likely be the key to Tuesday's vote: the makeup of the electorate in each. The disparate top line results can almost solely be laid at the feet of this key difference.

KSTP-TV opened it's 10 p.m. newscast with a poll showing the Minnesota governor's race is too close to call between DFLer Mark Dayton and Republican Tom Emmer.

DFL gubernatorial nominee Mark Dayton leads his Republican opponent Tom Emmer by 12 points in the latest Minnesota Public Radio/Humphrey Institute poll. The MPR poll is third survey of the governor's race this week.

Republican gubernatorial nominee Tom Emmer released a new television advertisement on Wednesday that ties in his campaign themes of no new taxes, reigning in government spending and creating jobs.

The last KSTP poll showed DFLer Mark Dayton at 42 percent, Republican Tom Emmer at 37 percent support. Tom Horner had 14 percent. In the last MPR/Humphrey poll, Dayton had 38 percent, Emmer had 27 percent and Horner had 16.

Facing a contest that has typically been labeled by most election analysts and pollsters as a "toss-up," third-party groups are pulling in millions of dollars from donors, national organizations, unions and corporations looking to tip the scale in their preferred candidate's favor. The groups' advertisements and activities have been some of the most visible of this year's campaign season.

At this stage in the governor's race four years ago, Republican Tim Pawlenty, DFLer Mike Hatch and the Independence Party's Peter Hutchinson had collected nearly $5 million in contributions, with the incumbent Pawlenty hauling in about three-fifths of that total.