Raleigh, N.C. – North Carolina voters’ opinion of Governor Bev Perdue’s job performance is at its best since January. After two straight months of decline, Perdue has rebounded to a 35-49 approval-disapproval margin. She has bumped up with voters across the board, but her biggest gain is with the voters in her own party. More than half of Democrats (56%) now approve of the work she is doing, and 26% disapprove. Democrats make up a 46% plurality of voters, but with dismal numbers with independents (27-57) and little support across the aisle (13%), she cannot rely on the crutch of bipartisanship in this bitterly divided climate.
The bad news: Perdue still ranks among the least popular governors in the country, and she still trails her 2008 foe and likely 2012 opponent, Pat McCrory. But the good news is her improvement in voters’ eyes has helped her close the gap. Perdue lags McCrory, 38-49, down from a 14-point deficit in March. McCrory continues to poach over a fifth of Perdue’s party. Double-digit crossover support among conservative white Democrats is to be expected, but Perdue needs to halve her erosion to even tie the race.
“Bev Perdue has seen her support from her party base increase over the last month as she’s shown a willingness to veto bills passed by the Republican legislature that run counter to Democratic values,” said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling. “If she keeps that up she may continue to see her approval numbers improve.”
A clue about North Carolina’s shift toward President Obama and the Democrats in 2008 lies in the influx of new residents who have flooded into the Raleigh and Charlotte metro areas in the last few decades. A 19% plurality of the state’s voters did not even live here about a decade ago. Another 15% immigrated sometime in the 1990s, and 11% were born or moved here during the 1980s. Those who set up shop most recently favor McCrory only 46-41.
For the first time, PPP has found Senator Kay Hagan more popular than her recently re-elected senior Republican colleague, Richard Burr. 42% approve of Hagan’s performance, and 38% disapprove, a slight edge over Burr’s 37-35 margin.
PPP surveyed 507 North Carolina voters from April 14th to 17th. The survey’s margin of error is +/-4.4%. Other factors, such as refusal to be interviewed and weighting, may introduce additional error that is more difficult to quantify.
Topline results are below. Full results, including crosstabs, can be found here.
Q1 Do you approve or disapprove of Governor Bev
Perdue’s job performance?
Approve…………….. 35%
Disapprove………… 49%
Not sure ……………. 17%
Q2 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Pat McCrory?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 33%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 27%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 40%
Q3 If the candidates for Governor next year were
Democrat Bev Perdue and Republican Pat
McCrory, who would you vote for?
Bev Perdue…………………………………………….. 38%
Pat McCrory……………………………………………. 49%
Undecided………………………………………………. 13%
Q4 Do you approve or disapprove of Senator
Richard Burr’s job performance?
Approve …………….. .37%
Disapprove…………. .35%
Not sure …………….. .28%
Q5 Do you approve or disapprove of Senator Kay
Hagan’s job performance?
Approve …………….. .42%
Disapprove…………. .38%
Not sure …………….. .20%
Q6 Who did you vote for President in 2008?
John McCain…………………………………………… 48%
Barack Obama………………………………………… 46%
Someone else/Don’t remember …………………. 6%
Q7 What best describes when you started living in
North Carolina?
Sometime between 2000 and now……………… 19%
1990s…………………………………………………….. 15%
1980s…………………………………………………….. 11%
1970s…………………………………………………….. 12%
1960s…………………………………………………….. 12%
1950s…………………………………………………….. 13%
1940s…………………………………………………….. 10%
1930s…………………………………………………….. 5%
Before 1930 ……………………………………………. 3%
Q8 Would you describe yourself as very liberal,
somewhat liberal, moderate, somewhat
conservative, or very conservative?
Very liberal ……………………………………………… 9%
Somewhat liberal …………………………………….. 14%
Moderate………………………………………………… 32%
Somewhat conservative……………………………. 22%
Very conservative ……………………………………. 22%
Q9 If you are a woman, press 1. If a man, press 2.
Woman ………………………………………………….. 53%
Man……………………………………………………….. 47%
Q10 If you are a Democrat, press 1. If a Republican,
press 2. If you are an independent or identify
with another party, press 3.
Democrat ……………………………………………….. 46%
Republican……………………………………………… 36%
Independent/Other…………………………………… 18%
Q11 If you are white, press 1. If African-American,
press 2. If other, press 3.
White …………………………………………………….. 74%
African-American …………………………………….. 22%
Other……………………………………………………… 4%
Q12 If you are 18 to 29 years old, press 1. If 30 to
45, press 2. If 46 to 65, press 3. If you are
older than 65, press 4.
18 to 29………………………………………………….. 10%
30 to 45………………………………………………….. 25%
46 to 65………………………………………………….. 45%
Older than 65………………………………………….. 20%
Q13
252………………………………………………………… 8%
336………………………………………………………… 26%
704………………………………………………………… 20%
828………………………………………………………… 13%
910………………………………………………………… 11%
919………………………………………………………… 21%
