NEWSWEEK
An exclusive look behind the maverick Senate candidate.

"I'm a pretty boring guy, in the grand scheme of things." Grant smirks that signature smirk of his. The young Naval Officer says. We are sitting in a campaign bus. With it's bustling activity, young aides glued to their laptops and mobile phones, it feels more like a campaign headquarters on wheels. The candidate, tall, strapping with icy-grey eyes is focused on a chill dog he is scarfing down.

"I don't remember the last time I ate." He said with a rueful smile."

There would be more days like this.

Adm. Fitzgerald Thomas Grant III was always destined for a life of public service. The son of former Governor Fitzgerald "Big Jerry" Grant II, many thought it would happen sooner rather than later.

"He always seemed reluctant about the nature of politics, but I don't think he is interested in being a politician. He just wants to get stuff done." Cyrus Beene, long time political operative and campaign manager told me.

Grant's "Listening Tour" as it has been called seems to be doing the trick. He, and a brigade of young, sharp and effective are skirting around California, tapping into local communities, previously ignored.

Controversially, the young Republican went to speak at a black Baptist church in Oakland, California. He and his young, and attractive wife sat front-row. Why?

The deadly shooting of Johnson Taylor, a young UCLA prospect who was mistakenly shot by law enforcement, when they mistook him for a criminal suspect. The case has taken on a life of its own, with protest pouring out to the streets. National news sources have been covering it non-stop. While some paid lip service to the situation, like Grant's Democratic opponent, Congressmen Jacob Shaw, the Senate prospect did something no one expected: he paid a visit to the family, with no media attention, and attended a church service with the family.

"I felt like it was the right thing to do. The Taylor's lost a child. Bright, young..." He pauses poignantly, his jaw locked, as he loses his train of thought. "That could have been my son." He says of his young, toddler.

The pictures were splashed all across newspapers, leaving the Shaw Campaign looking flat-footed and tone deaf. Something no one had expected, especially considering Shaw's own background growing up the biracial son of a white bus driver and a Mexican American cook. Years as a venture capitalist and hanging among the Hollywood elite has given California voters the impression that Shaw is all talk and was hoping to coast on the "Racist Republican" smear. The church visit not only did away with any potential for the Shaw campaign to go negative, it shot Grant to the top of the polls. According to the latest The Field Poll, Grant is up ten points.

Grant's campaign, a smaller, more intimate campaign that relies on its candidate doing town halls and intimate settings like diners and local events stands in sharp contrast to the Washington D.C based Shaw campaign.

"I think the whole "listening tour" thing is kinda weird." A Senior Democratic Strategist told me. "I mean, what is Grant trying to prove? He went to all the best schools, is a matinee idol with a trust fund, now all of a sudden, I am supposed to be impressed that he wants to talk to poor people?"

It is a hard pill to swallow for some. However, the relentless attacks from Shaw's campaign and the perceived lack of care about how negative in tone the Taylor tragedy is not doing Shaw any good, considering the poor polling. When I asked Grant about this, he shrugged.

"There are obviously going to be people who question the earnestness of my actions. For one, I am a white, male Republican. We are often not known to be racially sensitive." He smirked. "And on top of that, my father's record on issues dealing with community policing, poverty and school reform are less than stellar. Despite my love for my father, I can disagree on his approach."

By approach, the Candidate is referring to his father's Zero Tolerance policy, tough sentencing laws for first time drug offenders. The two men could not be more different in tone. Whether or not Grant's kinder, gentler conservationism holds, remains to be seen.

At a town hall, in a largely Hispanic San Bernardino, later that day, the candidate addressed issues of immigration reform. A young mother, Elise Alvarez asked the Governor about economic opportunity for newly arrived immigrants.

"I want a better future for my children. I am a clerical worker, and I work hard, but sometimes, it is not enough."

The candidate, listening intently as the young woman vented about her problems. She seemed skeptical of the candidate initially. However, I was able to catch the young mother after the town hall. She was loading her twin daughters, both five, into her mini-van when we chatted.

"I don't trust him. I know he's doing good. Better than some of the other Republicans, ya know. I am a Democrat. I've voted that way since becoming a citizen. But I liked what he had to say about education reform. I also liked his tax stuff."

"Are you going to vote for him?"

"I can't say. But I appreciate him coming here. Not a lot of candidates would. Every time I turn around Shaw is at some fundraiser at a movie star's house. I see the news."

After the local community college, where the event was held cleared out, the bus loaded up, the candidate spent some time on the phone with his wife. She was back in D.C because of work.

From what I picked up from the candidate, his son had a cold, his wife, dealing with a stressful cases...surprisingly, there was very little discussion about the campaign. When I asked why, Grant said: "You shouldn't talk shop all the time. As a couple, even when we are away from each other, you make time."

Maybe Grant was as normal as he seemed.