At top, Senate President Joseph A. Montalbano chats with Joe Renning of 26 Steeple St., Lincoln, in his door-to-door campaign. Above, independent Edward O’Neill enjoys lunch at Frank’s Family Restaurant on Smithfield Avenue. Waitress Susan Gabriele helps him with his coat.

The Providence Journal / Ruben W. Perez (top), Bob Thayer

LINCOLN –– Joseph A. Montalbano is among the three most powerful men inside the State House, but he has a difficult time finding friends on Steeple Street.

The Senate president trudged from house to house in this upscale neighborhood one afternoon last week, offering handshakes and campaign literature to the teenagers and a handful of uninterested adults who answered their doors.

Just one person invited him inside to warm up, on what was a wet and raw October day.

“You definitely get our vote,” said Jeff Manzo, who owns a jewelry store on North Providence’s Mineral Spring Avenue, the same street Montalbano calls home. “You won’t have any problem in the election.”

After a brief conversation, Montalbano headed toward the next house with a relieved smile. “You see that — I found a friend,” he said.

But he knows that Manzo’s encouraging words aren’t exactly accurate.

Montalbano, a 10-term incumbent, is in the midst of what may be his most challenging election in two decades. He is facing off against Edward O’Neill, a well-funded political independent from Lincoln, who has shown he’s not afraid to attack the powerful legislative leader.

“I do not owe favors to other members of the legislature, nor do I have the conflicts of interest associated with large contributions from political action committees. As your state senator, I will make you proud, not ashamed,” O’Neill declares in a campaign pamphlet titled “Ethics and integrity or ‘business as usual.’ ”

A retired Texas Instruments executive and self-described fiscal conservative, O’Neill has loaned his campaign $30,000 to take out advertisements in local newspapers, advertise on billboards and plaster the district with lawn signs. He also enjoys a geographic advantage.

Because of recent redistricting, Lincoln makes up the largest block of Senate District 17, nearly 44 percent of its registered voters. Montalbano, 53, a Pawtucket native who now lives in North Providence, is the first to admit he’s not as popular in Lincoln as the district’s other two communities, Pawtucket (19 percent of registered voters) and North Providence (38 percent).

O’Neill, 62, also makes near-daily appearances on local talk radio stations and enjoys the unofficial endorsement of the state Republican Party, which has long battled the state’s Democratic leadership. O’Neill notes that Governor Carcieri attended a recent fundraiser.

“Anybody but Montalbano,” proclaims a lawn sign created independently by the state GOP.

“He’s just a fun target,” the party’s executive director, Mark Pappas, said of Montalbano. “He’s the ringleader. He’s the Senate president. He’s the puppet master. He holds all the strings.”

Much of O’Neill’s criticism hinges on a 2007 state Ethics Commission case in which Montalbano agreed last September to pay a $12,000 fine, the third-highest penalty in the commission’s history.

Montalbano made no admission of guilt as part of the settlement, which addressed his failure to disclose legal work for the Town of West Warwick on property related to the Harrah’s-Narragansett Indian casino plan and his failure to file statements disclosing that his official actions in the Senate might pose a conflict of interest.

Montalbano characterizes the incident as simply failing to “complete my paperwork” and blames his opponent for being too negative.

“If I were a newcomer running in an election, I would be a lot less negative than he is,” Montalbano said of O’Neill, whose prior campaign experience consists of a failed run for town administrator in 2006. “I would concentrate more on telling people what I intend to do if I become the senator, instead of just a constant barrage of criticism which doesn’t help anyone.”

O’Neill acknowledges that his campaign is centered on his opponent. “He’s running on his record; I say, I’m running on his record,” O’Neill said.

Montalbano has drawn fire in Lincoln for supporting a plan to build a courthouse there (the plan was later changed in the face of local concern), but he cites several recent accomplishments, including renewable energy legislation, historic tax credits that have revitalized abandoned mills across the district, and helping to secure an additional $1.1 million for the Town of Lincoln as part of a deal to allow the Twin River slot parlor to extend its hours.

Further, Montalbano said he helped the state close a massive budget deficit last year without raising broad-based taxes.

He estimates he will have spent $40,000 on the race by Election Day. His most recent campaign finance report, filed yesterday, shows he spent $13,615.36 between Oct. 7 and Oct. 27 on “campaign-related expenses.” Over the same period, O’Neill spent $3,043.16.

But the reports show that one third of Montalbano’s expenses went to “food, beverage and meals” at various restaurants in the greater Providence area, a practice that’s not uncommon among Assembly leaders.

Montalbano said the restaurant bills are necessary for “promoting myself for and keeping the office of Senate president, which involves meeting with colleagues, making sure that they get the support they need in their reelection efforts.”

Meanwhile, despite widespread voter discontent about the state’s direction, Montalbano said he’s confident things will go his way on Tuesday.

“I expect it, but I don’t take it for granted,” Montalbano said of victory. “Yes, he’s running an aggressive campaign. My job is to point out the differences between myself and my opponent. I’m concentrating on my record of accomplishment.”

speoples@projo.com