RALEIGH — A new poll out shows Gov. Pat McCrory with a two point lead over Democratic challenger Attorney General Roy Cooper. The poll also shows the two presidential candidates in a dead heat in North Carolina, a battleground state for the November election.
The Civitas poll was conducted statewide on September 11-12 and used live callers, as opposed to recorded messages. It surveyed 600 registered, likely voters. In polling, “likely” means that they have shown a pattern of reliably casting a vote at the polls, while just “registered” does not always indicate the respondent regularly turns out on election day. The margin of error of the poll was +/- 4 percent.Forty-five percent of those polled supported McCrory, while 43 percent opted for Cooper. McCrory’s strongest showing was in the Triad and in Charlotte, with 57 percent of the respondents supporting him. McCrory is the former mayor of Charlotte, and the city is the epicenter of the controversial House Bill 2 law. Cooper fared best in the Triangle area, with 53 percent support, and in the western part of the state, near Asheville. Cooper showed 55 percent support among voters ages 18 to 25, while McCrory had the support of voters ages 26 to 40.
“As we head into the final two months of the election, it’s about as close as it can get in the races for president and governor,” Civitas President Francis De Luca said.As the election get closer, endorsements for Cooper and McCrory are coming out. McCrory has so far locked up the law enforcement community, with the announcement Thursday that the North Carolina Sheriff Police Alliance (NCSPA) endorsed McCrory for a second term, along with The North Carolina Fraternal Order of Police (N.C. FOP), North Carolina Police Benevolent Association and the North Carolina Troopers Association.Cooper has earned endorsements from advocacy and union groups including the AFL-CIO, Equality NC, Human Rights Campaign and Planned Parenthood. Both the North Carolina Association of Educators and the North Carolina League of Conservation Lawyers also support Cooper.
The Civitas poll also took a look at the presidential race in North Carolina and found that among respondents, Trump and Clinton were tied, each getting 42 percent. Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson took five percent of the respondents’ support with the rest saying they are undecided. The results were released the same day that Hillary Clinton campaigned in Greensboro and Trump announced plans to stump for votes in High Point next week.
