NC-SEN: New poll shows Whatley within striking distance of Cooper as GOP support coalesces

[RandySF]

Gov. Roy Cooper leads Michael Whatley by four percentage points in a new poll from Public Policy Polling, which shows a race that remains competitive as voters begin to tune into the campaign.

While national attention has increasingly turned to high-profile Senate races in Maine and Texas, the newly released poll suggests that Whatley, the former RNC and NC GOP chairman, still has an opportunity to contest a race that forecasters say favors Cooper.

The PPP poll, released on Monday, surveyed 759 North Carolina voters earlier this month and found Cooper leading the race by 48% to 44%, with a margin of error of +/-3.6%. That’s a slight increase in support for Cooper from PPP’s March survey, which showed him leading by 47% to 44%.

Both surveys are relative outliers, as most polls this year have shown Cooper with a substantial lead over Whatley — often in the double digits, a rarity in North Carolina’s perennially razor-thin statewide elections.



https://ncnewsline.com/briefs/new-poll-shows-whatley-within-striking-distance-of-cooper-as-gop-support-coalesces/

[Fiendish Thingy]

1. Nah, Cooper's got this. Nt

[dsc]

2. They are a very good pollster so we should take it seriously

though I reached out the pollster (he is a facebook friend) and he says no reason to panic. It should be noted that we haven't had Dems win by massive amounts since I have lived here (2004). And in terms of the Senate, we have only won twice since the late 1990s. Edwards won in 1998 and Kagan won in 2008 (when Obama carried NC). That means we lost in 2002. 2014, 2020 for the seat up now and 2004, 2010, 2016, and 2022 for the other seat. That makes us 2 and 7. I do think Cooper will win but it isn't going to be a landslide by any means.

In comparison, we have won every governor's race but one since I have been down here. We only lost 2012 when the great recession caused Bev Purdue to make massive unpopular cuts. That makes us 1 and 5. But only the 2024 vs Robinson was a blowout.