Cooper holds 13-point lead over Whatley in NC Senate race: Poll

A new poll found former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) holds a 13-point lead over his GOP opponent Michael Whatley in the state’s Senate race less than two weeks away from Election Day.

The Elon University poll reported 52 percent of respondents favored Cooper, 39 percent backed Whatley, 6 percent were undecided and 3 percent chose Libertarian candidate Shannon Bray, Green Party candidate Michael Dublin or “someone else.”

In a forced-choice question, where undecided voters were asked to make a choice in the Senate race, 54 percent chose Cooper and 43 percent picked Whatley.

Cooper and Whatley are looking to take the Senate seat currently occupied by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who announced he would not be running for reelection. It is one seat Democrats are hoping to pick up in their effort to regain control of the upper chamber.

Cooper led among independent respondents with 50 percent choosing him, 24 percent picking Whatley and 17 percent still undecided.

Whatley held leads among white voters, though Cooper led among Black, Hispanic and female voters. Both candidates were tied among male respondents at 42 percent.

“Cooper’s lead among registered voters overall is smaller than his lead among the subset of registered voters who say they are likely to vote, implying opportunity for Republicans if they can motivate more of their base to turn out,” noted Jason Husser, director of the Elon University Poll and professor of political science and public policy.

In an effort to invigorate GOP voters , President Trump made a stop in Greenville, N.C. , after Vice President Vance visited Hendersonville, N.C .

Husser said results of the poll indicated that, among Republicans in the Tar Heel State, a candidate’s endorsement from Trump did not make them less likely to support the endorsed candidate, and even the president’s $5,000 dividend proposal did not appear to sway North Carolina voters toward Republicans. Trump previously stated dividend checks would be doled out only if the GOP maintains its majorities in the House and Senate after the midterm elections.

Thirty percent of those polled said Trump’s dividend promise makes them less likely to vote for the GOP while 16 percent said it makes them more likely to, and 50 percent said the president’s promise makes no difference in their vote.

“Even among those who approve of the President’s job performance, most said the dividend makes no difference to their voting decision. However, the President’s endorsement still resonates with his base,” Husser added.

Of the registered voters surveyed, 43 percent said a Trump endorsement would “make it less likely they would vote for a candidate,” compared to 25 percent who said it would make them more likely to vote for a candidate and 26 percent who said a Trump endorsement made no difference.

The Elon University poll was conducted between Sept. 29-Oct. 8 among 800 North Carolina adults. The margin of error was 4.03 percentage points.