Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich plans to stop in East Lansing on Thursday to lure support from the area's young population.

The Ohio Congressman is scheduled to speak at 2:15 p.m. at the East Lansing Hannah Community Center, 819 Abbott Road, Kucinich state Coordinator Bob Alexander said.

Details of the stop are not finalized, but Kucinich is expected to speak for about 20 minutes and then answer questions from the audience, Alexander said of the event, which is open to the public.

Kucinich also plans to stop in Ann Arbor to speak at the University of Michigan and to join picketers outside a Borders Inc. book store. He also will attend a church and hold a public reception in Detroit later in the day.

Alexander said he wanted to bring Kucinich to larger Michigan college campuses before students head home for the holiday break.

The Kucinich campaign platform includes providing tuition-free college education for students attending state universities throughout the country. According to his Web site, the 12 million students in state universities cost about $48 billion in tuition costs, which could be paid for by shifting priorities such as using a third of the most recent tax cut to cover the costs.

"He understands the need for a college education and the need not to leave college with a whole bunch of debts," Alexander said.

Kucinich also wants universal health care, to repeal the Patriot Act and to pull U.S. troops out of Iraq.

The presidential hopeful was against the war in Iraq and is considered one of the most liberal of the nine democratic candidates but has lagged behind in the polls with less than 10 percent of the support.

Republicans likely will gather outside the event to support President Bush on Thursday and at other events as more candidates come to town with the Feb. 7 Democratic Caucus creeping closer, said Tim Phelps, political director of the Michigan Federation of College Republicans.

The caucus gives Michigan citizens the opportunity to vote for which candidate receives the state's 17 electoral votes.

"Any time one of the Democratic candidates comes into town, we want to make sure we're there to let people know about the president's message," said Phelps, a political theory and constitutional democracy sophomore.

Phelps said he is traveling to Dearborn to help at a Bush fund-raiser lunch where the president is expected to speak.

East Lansing has become a hot spot for presidential candidates to stop during the past three elections, City Manager Ted Staton said.

Staton said the visits help raise awareness of the election and increase voter turnout for young people.

"I think it does wonders for voters interested in the campaign," Staton said.