YES! Confirmation from a new poll that NC is turning BLUE!

[mnhtnbb]

Is N.C. turning blue?

North Carolina is a red state when it comes to presidential politics, having last voted for a Democrat in 1976 for Jimmy Carter.

But with public opinion turning against the Iraq war, might the Democrats have a chance?

Yes, says a new poll by Public Policy Polling, a Raleigh-based polling firm.

The survey found that a generic Democratic presidential candidate would beat a generic Republican presidential candidate, 43-41.

The firm polled 448 likely general election voters on Feb. 12. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.6 percentage points.



http://www.newsobserver.com/722/story/545345.html

I imagine the generic match-up is simply the question whether someone would vote for a Democrat or Republican for President. This is really good news, though, and supports what I've been saying for a long time: a Democratic candidate CAN win in the South.

I hope ALL the Dem candidates will start paying more attention. I know at least one will: John Edwards.

Cross-posting to the NC State Forum

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=170x8692

[KKKarl is an idiot]

1. ..

Well that is great news. Do we know where VA stands on its affiliation?

[mnhtnbb]

2. Calling all Virginian DU'ers. Seen any polls like this for your state?

[theboss]

3. This is a "Believe it When I See it Issue"

Every four years, NC is supposed to be up for grabs, and every four years, the Republican wins it by 400,000 votes.

[Blackhatjack]

6. I live here, and I see it happening on the ground....

People I have known all my life as 'republican voters' are disavowing Bush and the Repub Party. Some were the most outspoken supporters of this Adminstration even just a year ago. However, the 'worm has turned' for so many of them because of the disaster in Iraq AND they see the corruption that is being revealed.

Just wait until the Congressional Investigations begin to expose the corruption publicly.

One thing NC voters pay attention to is the military, since we have many military bases and a long history of supporting the troops. What is not showing up publicly, but is happening nonetheless, is that the troops and their families are very unhappy with Bush, his lack of a winning plan, and the multiple rotations to Iraq. They won't speak out publicly for the most part, but if you observe Bush's last trip here to address the troops he got only the mandatory applause from them and very few hoorahs.

NC urban voters are very blue, and the rural voters are moving into the blue column every day.

And John Edwards will win NC IMHO. That is why there is so much money being spent, and so much effort being put forth, to try and blunt his campaign today --he is the real threat to be elected the Repubs fear the most.

[Greeby]

4. I'll be lieve it when Patrick McHenry is gone from Congress nt

[pecwae]

5. We shall see.

Liddy is going for another term. WRAL forums give the impression that we're all Helms-like in attitude.

I'm hesitantly hopeful for a turnaround, though.

[Blackhatjack]

7. Liddy Dole is simply 'holding this space' for another candidate to step in...

Given her age and declination to be a member of an even smaller minority in the Senate, I seriously doubt she will run again --all of her protestations to the contrary.

The Repub Party here is almost totally focused locally, and Bush is persona non grata.

As I posted elsewhere, I run into voters daily that have always voted Repub who are disavowing their allegiance to Bush and the Repub Party.

One thing NC voters cannot abide is mistreatment of the troops, and that feeling is there even though most cannot make a public statement.

IMHO the Republican McHenry's will be gone next election. The reason so many hung on this last election was there were so many races in the balance that there was not enough DEM money to go around to fund all the challenges. An incumbent is hard to beat, and darn near impossible if their challenger has no money to finance their campaign.

[theboss]

8. We'd better have a lot more Heath Shulers down there

I think the misconception that we always get out of North Carolina is similar in some ways to the misconceptions that Democrats have in Virginia - where I live. They see Northern Virginia growing and growing and growing and always think that the "tipping point" where Northern Virginia establishes the politics of the rest of Virginia is finally here.

Despite the election of Webb, I'm not sure that point is here. Allen ran the worst campaign I have ever personally witnessed and Webb did exceptionally well in military-dominated Tidewater region. I don't know if we have that many candidates who can win both Northern Virginia and Norfolk.

I think North Carolina is similar in that the Research Triangle keeps growing and growing and everyone seems to think that someday, it will be the deciding factor in NC politics. And then the presidential election happens and the Republican wins easily.

[BlueIris]

9. HAH. I knew it.

Because: they were robbed. They know it.

[mnhtnbb]

10. I also live in NC. Granted Chapel Hill is unlike much of the rest

of the state, but anecdotal evidence that indicates it IS changing is now supported by this new poll.

As for the last election, there were known lost votes in Carteret County due to voting machines. I think there were additional shenanigans. I was watching the polls very closely, and Kerry/Edwards had closed to within 5 % of Bush the week before the election. Then, wham, the election turned up with almost the exact % difference as the spread in 2000--and significantly more than the margin of error.

We have a new State Dem party chair NOT from the old school Dem party and Jerry Meek is making a difference.

As another poster said, don't underestimate the influence of the military here--both active and retired. The troops know they are being screwed now by the Bushies, both in the war and for benefits when they return home.

NC can go blue.

[mnhtnbb]

11. Kickin' for the afternoon crowd.

[joeunderdog]

12. Yeah, but their voting machines are red. nt