Where do Biden and Trump stand in NC? COVID-19, race relations play a role, poll says

Joe Biden is leading President Donald Trump in North Carolina by seven points, according to a new NBC News/Marist poll.

Fifty-one percent of registered voters said they would vote for Biden, compared with 44 percent who support Trump. In March, 49 percent of voters supported Biden compared with 45 percent who backed Trump.

Voters favored the presumptive Democratic nominee over Trump for handling race relations and the coronavirus, but a majority of voters said Trump would do a better job handling the economy, the poll said.

The majority of North Carolina voters disapprove of Trump, with 55 percent disapproving compared with 41 percent who approve. In March, 45 percent approved and 48 percent disapproved.

Former Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton was leading Trump in North Carolina in July 2016, with 44 percent supporting Clinton and 38 percent supporting Trump, according to NBC News.

Trump won North Carolina’s electoral votes in 2016 with 49.8 percent of the vote compared with Clinton, who had 46.2 percent, according to The New York Times.

Democratic Senate and gubernatorial candidates also have a lead in the state, the poll says.

Fifty-eight percent of voters said they would vote for Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, compared with 38 percent who support Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, a Republican. Cooper has an approval rating of 59 percent, compared with 35 percent who disapprove of him, the poll says.

Democratic Senate candidate Cal Cunningham is also leading Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, with 50 percent of voters supporting Cunningham compared with 41 percent backing Tillis, the poll says.

Thirty-two percent of voters agreed with Trump’s decision to move the Republican National Convention from Charlotte this year because he “thought the protocols for coronavirus were too strict.” Sixty-two percent said that the “state was right to prioritize its health protocols for large gatherings over the objections of the president,” the poll says.

The NBC Poll had a sample size of 1,067 adults and was conducted from July 14-22. It has a margin of error of 3.7 percentage points, and the margin of error among the 822 registered voters is 4 percentage points.

This story was originally published July 27, 2020 at 4:39 PM with the headline "Where do Biden and Trump stand in NC? COVID-19, race relations play a role, poll says."