Trump, Biden running neck and neck in North Carolina: poll

President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden are running neck and neck in North Carolina as the Tarheel State emerges as one of the top swing states in the country.

In a new East Carolina University poll released Tuesday, President Trump garners the support of 49 percent of likely voters in the state, compared with 47 percent for Biden, a difference that falls within the survey’s margin of error. Another 3 percent are undecided, and 2 percent said they would back another candidate. 

Of those who said they intend to vote for either Trump or Biden, just 4 percent answered that they are still open to changing their mind. Seventy-one percent of Trump voters and 70 percent of Biden voters said they are “extremely excited” about voting for president. 

“Our poll results show that there are few undecided voters and few voters who are willing to change their mind, whether they are currently Biden or Trump supporters. This suggests that campaign efforts to persuade voters is unlikely to make a significant difference. Instead, the outcome of the Trump-Biden contest in North Carolina will hinge on which party – Democrats or Republicans – do a better job of turning out their supporters to vote,” said Peter Francia, director of the Center for Survey Research. 

The poll is just the latest to show a tight race in North Carolina, a swing state Trump won by about 4 points in 2016. The RealClearPolitics average of polls shows the president with a narrow 1-point edge there.

The Tarheel State is also home to a number of competitive down-ballot races, with Sen. Thom Tillis (R) and Democrat Cal Cunningham knotted up at 44 percent in North Carolina’s Senate race. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has a 50-40 lead over Lt. Gov. Dan Forest (R). 

The East Carolina University poll surveyed 1,101 likely voters from Aug. 29 to Aug. 30 and has a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points.