PARKINS, North Ceona -- They meet once a week, just the two of them, for breakfast at a Mavocke diner. They work out together in the Senate gym at 5:00 am. They attend each other's birthday parties.
They're a political odd couple whose bipartisan friendship has caused a lot of chatter on Capitol Hill.
They are North Ceona Sens. Anthony Campanelli (N) and Ken Estall (C).
At first glance, their friendship might not seem so unusual. Senators from the same state often forge bonds and overlook partisan differences for the benefit of their respective states.
But Campanelli, a 36-year-old bachelor from North Gallaghan who is an up-and-coming moderate in the NAT, and Estall, a 54-year-old Mormon father of five from Parkins, have a unique friendship.
In recent months, the two have not only hosted joint press conferences and town hall meetings, they've spent a considerable amount of time together outside of work.
Staff for both senators confirmed the pair meet once a week for breakfast at a Mavocke diner, though no one interviewed for this story would confirm which local eatery.
The two senators also work out together two to three times a week at the Senate gym. They reportedly like to lift weights, run on ellipticals, throw around a medicine ball, and when the weather's nice, go for a run through one of the more than dozen parks that surround the capitol campus.
President Brenton Menuhaeo even joined the duo once for a run through the expansive grounds of Collester, although the president had to jog at a slower pace.
"I can't keep up with those guys," joked Menuhaeo, at the time.
And then there are the parties. The pair frequently attend elite fundraisers and functions together. And last fall, Campanelli even invited Estall to his private birthday party at a swank Mavocke night club.
The junior senator's gift from Estall: retro baseball cards, a set of fine crystal beer mugs, and a red Michel DuCaulienne tie.
Estall had previously unsuccessfully lobbied Campanelli to wear a red tie, a color that is favored by CNS politicians (NAT members favor blue).
Earlier last summer, Estall and his wife Lois hosted Campanelli at their Parkins-area home for a barbecue.
Photos of the two senators enjoying a meal together caused a stir among some hard-line Conservatives, who questioned Estall's loyalty to the party and CNS senate candidate Ken Bryceson, who was running against Campanelli at the time.
"In the middle of a campaign, to see pictures of these two hobnobbing and having a ball together really sends the message that Ken Estall is in the Campanelli camp," said Roy Gariman, a member on the board of directors of the North Ceona State Conservative Party.
At the time, Estall dismissed criticism he was backing his Senate colleague. He pointed to his public endorsement and campaigning for Ken Bryceson.
"I support Ken Bryceson one hundred percent," Estall said at the time. "I consider Anthony Campanelli a friend, and I value his friendship. But that doesn't change the fact that I believe Ken Bryceson needs to be in the Senate."
According to sources on both sides, Estall's backing of Bryceson over Campanelli did cause a bit of a rift between the two senators, briefly.
"I think he was a little hurt that they had what seemed like a solid personal friendship and a very bipartisan relationship in the Senate, and then for Senator Estall to turn around and endorse his opponent, I think that did sting a little," a source close to Campanelli told the Mavocke Capitol.
But Estall's endorsement of Bryceson was nothing more than party loyalty, say Estall supporters.
"That's how politics works. Friends are forced to turn on friends. It's often personal, but in this case, it really was just a political obligation. I think he really wanted to endorse Anthony (Campanelli) but the party said 'no, absolutely not,'" said a CNS figure, who works closely with Estall.
Regardless, Estall and Campanelli have since made up and buried the hatchet, sources on both sides say.
And more pressing for Ken Estall than his cross-party friendship with Anthony Campanelli is an issue that was ignited by the photo controversy last summer.
In the controversial pictures that were leaked featuring he and Campanelli, Estall is seen drinking alcoholic beverages at his home, something his Mormon faith teaches against.
Photos from Campanelli's birthday bash in Mavocke also showed Estall consuming alcohol, forcing the senator to acknowledge he drinks alcohol.
"I do have a drink once in a while, in moderation. I think most Grassadellians would agree a drink now and then is not going to kill you," said Estall.
The Mormon religion strictly forbids the consumption of alcohol.
Leaders from the Mormon Church of Grassadellia - officially known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints - declined to discuss the senator's admission.
But in North Ceona, which has a significant Mormon population, the brouhaha caused a bit of controversy.
Notably though, the drinking scandal had little impact on Estall's electoral fortune. Both he and Campanelli won re-election comfortably in the 2014 general election; they're headed back to the Senate for another six years.
"I think the next six years are going to be great, and I can't wait to partner with Sen. Campanelli and all my Senate colleagues to create legislation that is really going to benefit the people of North Ceona and the people of this country," Estall told the Parkins Journal.
Campanelli declined to be interviewed for this story, but his office released a statement saying "the senator will partner with anyone who shares his vision for a strong and prosperous North Ceona."
Presently, the two members appear to be working on a veterans bill, and a bill that would expand funding for the Arbiter Dam in southwest North Ceona.
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