By N. R. Kleinfield
The New York Times

The long shot ate breakfast with his mother. She asked for campaign buttons for her friends. He handed her a dozen. She got worried. That many? Weren’t they expensive? Calm down, Mom, he said, they’re cheap.

How could she not worry? Most of the long shot’s time was spent drumming up money so he could be elected United States senator from New York.

He recently took a leave from his job to campaign full-time for the Democratic nomination. When he worked, he made $110,000 a year. Now: zero.

The long shot’s campaign chest was in the vicinity of $100,000.

It is what it is. Jonathan Tasini knows that. Last time around, pitted against Hillary Rodham Clinton, he was the 17 percent man, gathering that percentage of the vote in the 2006 Democratic primary. He settled back into his day job as a consultant for labor unions.

That was O.K. As he put it now, “There was not one day that I thought I would win.”

Now it’s primary time again, and the long shot is back in business.

This time, persuaded of broad voter furor, Mr. Tasini believes he has a legitimate chance, with his progressive views and a résumé of never having held political office. Provided, that is, he can assemble much more money — he’s thinking $1 million to $10 million. If he does, he actually feels he will not only win, but also, it will not be close.

Sometimes long shots need to think that way.

Right now, he appreciates that most people do not even know he is running. He declared his candidacy in June.

It might have been more pleasurable going alone against Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand, no powerhouse on the order of Mrs. Clinton. But this month Harold E. Ford Jr., the Tennessee transplant, began floating his candidacy. With two names now in the headlines, well, it can get lonely being the long shot.

Even a lot of admirers won’t predict a good ending.

When a Marist poll on the race came out this month, the results were Ms. Gillibrand, 43 percent; Mr. Ford 24 percent; undecided 33 percent. Mr. Tasini was not even a choice.

Mr. Tasini’s reaction? “Terrific.”

He pointed out that the poll demonstrated that most people did not support the senator and a quarter supported someone who had not yet joined the race. Made him feel the nomination could be his.

When the Massachusetts Senate race unexpectedly went Republican a week ago, Mr. Tasini interpreted it as voter contempt for insiders.

“People who say the long shot, they lack imagination,” he said. “My question back to them is when will be enough? When will be enough not to vote for these insiders?”

He is 53 and single, with frameless glasses and thinning dark hair practically ironed to his head.

Views: He is against the health care bill, and wants Medicare for all. He is against the dual wars (“I will not vote for a single penny to continue either war”). He wants to increase the minimum wage immediately to $10 an hour and see it quickly reach $15 to $20. He wants a stronger labor movement. (“People say you’re antibusiness. I’m pro-business because I want jobs. What I’m against is foolishness.”) He wants a tax on every transaction on Wall Street. He supports gay marriage and gun control.

Read the rest of the article on the New York Times site.