- NEW: President Obama heckled by immigration protesters in Connecticut
- Obama is scheduled to campaign Sunday in Connecticut and Pennsylvania
- He'll rally for two gubernatorial candidates, which is where he's focused his fall campaigning
- His campaign stops have been limited this cycle amid low approval ratings
Philadelphia (CNN) -- After a campaign season marked mainly by Democrats fleeing his shadow, President Barack Obama embarked upon the final push of what he calls his last campaign Sunday, hoping to mobilize voters in the few pockets of the country where he remains somewhat popular.
Obama headlined afternoon campaign rallies for Democratic gubernatorial candidates in Connecticut and Pennsylvania, capping off a cycle that saw him rally for only one Senate candidate and a handful of governors.
His diminished presence in 2014 amounted mostly to headlining high-dollar fundraisers in wealthy neighborhoods, mostly on the coasts, where he sought to motivate donors amid bleak prospects for his party in Tuesday's midterm elections.
In tight races across the country, Democrats have distanced themselves from his policies, declaring themselves independent from the White House as Republicans worked overtime to lump them into the same unpopular mold.
The President himself has fueled that effort at times, saying during an economic address in October that his "policies are on the ballot" and telling Al Sharpton during a radio interview that vulnerable Democrats are "all folks that vote with me."
Obama, whose presidential campaign drew massive crowds of young people and African-Americans in 2008 and 2012, has been working to propel those voters to the polls. Democrats have little chance of keeping control of the Senate unless traditional Democratic voting blocs turn out in force.
That was Obama's goal Sunday in Philadelphia, where he revved up a majority black crowd at a rally for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Wolf.
"We've got some work to do. Because two days from now, you get to choose your future," he said, reminding the 5,500 attendees that the historic battle for the right to vote must be honored by casting ballots in midterm elections.
Obama reiterated that theme in Connecticut earlier Sunday at a rally for Gov. Dannel Malloy.
"Your vote matters," he told the 1,900 supporters who came to see him speak in Bridgeport. "Don't let people tell you it doesn't."
The crowd in Connecticut was largely enthusiastic about hearing from the President, but his speech was interrupted multiple times by protesters for immigration reform who carried signs with messages such as "DREAMers demand bold, broad, inclusive relief."
Each time protesters interrupted Obama, they were shouted down by the crowd. On at least one occasion, members of the crowd ripped the signs away from a group of protesters, who were ultimately escorted out by security.
The campaign effort over the weekend amounted to Obama's biggest push for Democrats this cycle. His reduced role is the outcome of record low approval ratings and policies unpopular in many parts of the country.
The restricted campaign role isn't necessarily where Obama wanted to be during the final congressional contests of his presidency, though past second-term presidents have similarly dragged down their party's candidates.
"I'm not on the ballot this time, and this is the last election cycle in which I'm involved as President," he said in Maine on Thursday. "It makes you a little wistful, because I do like campaigning. It's fun."
He was originally scheduled to campaign in Connecticut last month, but canceled shortly beforehand for meetings on his administration's Ebola response.
The president's rescheduled appearance comes at a potentially critical point for Malloy. The one-term governor is polling neck-and-neck in his re-election battle against Republican nominee Tom Foley, a former U.S. ambassador to Ireland who lost to Malloy by only 6,400 votes in 2010.
A Quinnipiac poll released Wednesday had the two men at 43% each among likely voters. A third candidate, Joseph Visconti, is polling third with 7% in the same survey, with 6% undecided.
Despite these poll numbers, Connecticut Democratic Party spokesman Ian Sams said Sunday he believes a heavy emphasis on voter turnout will bring Malloy a win on Tuesday.
"I think with President Obama coming here today, we're going to see a lot of interest from base Democratic voters," Sims told CNN. "If they come out to vote, turn out in full force, Gov. Malloy's confident he's going to win this campaign."
Connecticut is a reliably blue state, but not totally averse to GOP governors -- Malloy himself succeeded two Republicans when he took office.
In Pennsylvania, Wolf has led the GOP incumbent Tom Corbett for most of the race, and while polls have narrowed recently, he still maintains an edge.
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