Working mother Pam Pugel from Seattle and small-business owner Jackie Richter from Eastern Washington are not happy about how much they're paying for gas -- and they're pointing fingers at Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) in two new radio ads released Monday.

With Gregoire having barely won the 2004 election after two recounts and with only a 130-vote lead over Dino Rossi (R), this year's rematch is gearing up to be another close and contentious battle.

The ads, released by the Olympia-based conservative organization It's Time For A Change, berate Gregoire for signing into law the "largest gas tax increase in state history" in 2005. "Under Gov. Christine Gregoire, traffic congestion on our highways has increased by 35 percent, while state transportation taxes have gone up nearly $400 per family," an announcer claims in the first ad, "Pam" (subscription).

The women in the ads represent the varied fuel demands residents have across the state, from the primarily metropolitan west to the rural communities in the east. They both accuse the governor of not paying attention to their needs. "I think Christine Gregoire has really dropped the ball on transportation," Pam Pugel asserts in her ad. And in the other ad, "Jackie" (subscription), Jackie Richter says she feels ignored by Gregoire: "To continually vote yes on taxes, when we're all struggling along, makes me wonder where she lives. She's forgotten about us up here in Eastern Washington."

Erin Shannon, spokeswoman for the Building Industry Association of Washington, which contributes to It's Time For A Change, said the ads underscore Gregoire's lack of concern for small businesses.

"As an organization that represents 13,500 small business owners, that's a huge concern for us. We would like to see a pro-business governor," she said, adding that Rossi would "absolutely" fill that role.

"He has run a business and knows what it's like to sign the front of a paycheck," Shannon said. "Gregoire has worked for the state for 39 years. We think she is completely out of touch with what small business and families face in Washington state."

Shannon said the ads' original intent was to address the issue of transportation more generally, but the two women ended up telling equally compelling stories and represented both sides of the state well. She was quick to note that Eastern Washington voters, though, sometimes "get shortchanged" in elections.

"When voters are being addressed by candidates, oftentimes on topics like transportation, all the focus is on Western Washington and what's important to Western Washington," Shannon said.