HRC leads by 2 in NC--Senate race is tight as well

West Long Branch, NJ – The presidential race in North Carolina is extremely tight with Hillary Clinton holding a negligible 2 point lead over Donald Trump. Incumbent U.S. senator Richard Burr has a similarly small 2 point lead in his race for reelection. The Monmouth University Poll also finds that HB2, the law regarding transgender public restrooms that most voters see harming the Tar Heel State’s image, looks to be a drag on Pat McCrory’s bid for a second term as governor.

Among North Carolina voters likely to cast ballots in November’s presidential election, 44% currently support Clinton and 42% back Trump. Another 7% intend to vote for Libertarian Gary Johnson, 1% name another candidate, and 6% are undecided.

Trump does nearly as well as Clinton in getting the backing of fellow partisans, with 86% of Republicans supporting their party’s nominee and 91% of Democrats backing their standard bearer. Independents prefer Trump (44%) over Clinton (30%), with 15% supporting Johnson.

Clinton leads by 63 points among black, Hispanic, and Asian voters (76% to 13%), while Trump leads by 23 points among white voters (54% to 31%). In 2012, Barack Obama won non-white voters by 75 points, while Mitt Romney took the white vote by 37 points. Trump is currently doing about equally as well among white men (51% to 29%) and white women (56% to 33%), although is losing white voters with a college degree by 39% to 43% for Clinton. Trump maintains a sizable advantage among white voters without a college degree (66% to 22%).

“North Carolina has given us tight presidential races over the last two cycles and this year appears to be no different,” said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute.
Turning to the U.S. Senate race, GOP incumbent Richard Burr holds an insignificant 45% to 43% lead over former Democratic state legislator Deborah Ross. Another 4% say they will vote for Libertarian Sean Haugh and 8% are undecided. Burr has the support of 94% of Republicans while Ross has the backing of 89% of Democrats. Independents prefer Burr by 46% to 31%.

http://www.monmouth.edu/polling-institute/reports/MonmouthPoll_NC_082416/