LEWISTON – First lady Laura Bush is coming to Lewiston on Friday to campaign for her husband, campaign officials said Saturday.

Details of the time and exact location are not yet available, Kevin Madden, Northeast spokesman for the Bush-Cheney re-election campaign, said Saturday. Laura Bush will be speaking at a place that will accommodate a large crowd. More details will be announced on Tuesday, Madden said.

Despite several visits to his parents in Kennebunkport, President Bush himself has not campaigned in Maine since Earth Day. The Friday event will be the first lady’s first campaign appearance in Lewiston, Madden said.

Her visit to Lewiston, and also Manchester, N.H. on Friday, will be part of a “W Stands for Women” event. She’ll be accompanied by Maine women in the “W Stands for Women Coalition,” said Peter Cianchette, who heads the Bush campaign in Maine. “It’s a strong coalition,” he said. “The first lady knows the president best. We’re excited to have her in town.”

The timing of her visit is excellent, Cianchette said. “The president is coming off a great convention. It’s terrific we can have the first lady come to help carry that momentum,” said Cianchette, who was a Maine delegate at the Republican National Convention in New York City.

Laura Bush will campaign for her Republican husband in what is largely a Democratic town. Lewiston has more registered Democrats than Republicans. The city was chosen for the first lady’s visit because the campaign wants to make its case to all Maine voters, Madden said. The election is too important to pick campaign stops “based on voter registration,” he said.

When she visits Friday, the first lady will talk about issues “important to Maine,” Madden said, adding that those issues include President Bush’s educational reforms and efforts to raise student achievement, affordable and accessible health care, jobs and the economy, and support for small businesses – especially those run by women. “And of course making the country safer and the war on terrorism,” Madden said.

Nationally, polls show that Laura Bush is a popular first lady. Madden described her as a woman with charm, grace and intelligence. “The president says it best when he’s said the best reason for re-electing him is to have Laura Bush as first lady for another four years,” he said.

Maine is a target state in the campaign, and Laura Bush’s visit “shows that the president, the first lady and campaign care about Maine voters and what they think; that’s why they’re coming,” said Dwayne Bickford, executive director of the Republican Party of Maine.

A visit by the first lady will mean extra security, Lewiston police Sgt. David St. Pierre said. Police had just learned of her visit, he said Saturday.

When someone of the first lady’s stature comes to Lewiston, Secret Service agents arrive in the city well ahead of time. “They work closely with us,” St. Pierre said. Lewiston police expect to learn more about the visit on Tuesday, St. Pierre added.