GREENSBORO — With North Carolina's Senate race closing up, business is beginning to use its clout to help Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole.

Dole accepted the endorsement Wednesday of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, which counts 7,200 businesses in the state. That comes just days after the U.S. Chamber of Commerce began an independent TV advertising effort on behalf of Dole, Rob Christensen reports.

Gregg Thompson, the state director of NFIB, said his organization would do multiple mailings to its members on behalf of Dole in her campaign against Democrat Kay Hagan.

Dole, a member of the Senate Small Business Committee, said she would continue to work to keep taxes low for small businesses, fight efforts to make it easier for unions to organize, and oppose both more regulation on small business and "frivolous" lawsuits brought against business.

"I stand for the same principles and values," said Dole, at a new conference at Advanced Direct, a direct mail firm located in a an industrial park.