NORTH CAROLINA 15 Electoral Votes
Population 
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau, North Carolina State Board of Elections)
Total Population, July 1, 2006 est. 8,856,505
Total Registration, May 3, 2008 > 5,801,880
Dem. 2,625,522 (45.25%)   Rep. 1,933,434 (33.32%)   Unaffil. 1,242,924 (21.42%)
White 4,371,988 (75.35%)   Black 1,198,672 (20.66%)   Other 184,938 (3.19%)
North Carolina has: 100 counties.
Five largest counties: Mecklenburg, Wake, Guilford, Forsyth, Cumberland. >
Five largest cities: Charlotte, Raleigh, Greensboro, Durham, Winston-Salem. >

Government
Governor: Michael F. Easley (D) elected in 2000, re-elected in 2004; term-limited in 2008.
State Legislature: North Carolina General Assembly  House: 120 seats  Senate: 50 seats
Local: Cities and Towns, Counties, More  NACO Counties
U.S. House: 7D, 6R - 1. G.K. Butterfield (D) | 2. B.Etheridge (D) | 3. W.B.Jones (R) | 4. D.Price (D) | 5. V.Foxx (R) | 6. H.Coble (R) | 7. M.McIntyre (D) | 8. R.Hayes (R) | 9. S.Myrick (R) | 10. P.McHenry (R) | 11. H.Shuler (D) | 12. M.Watt (D) | 13. B.Miller (D)
U.S. Senate: Elizabeth Dole (R) up for re-election in 2008, Richard Burr (R) elected in 2004. 



The Tar Heel State
 

 State of North Carolina
State Board of Elections

Libertarian Party of NC
NC Democratic Party
NC Greens
NC Republican Party
Constitution Party of NC

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Politics1-NC
The Insider

 

Primary Election -- Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Mail-In Voting: March 17 - April 29.  One Stop Registration and Voting: April 17 - May 3.
Democrats
134 Delegates (115 Pledged, 19 Unpledged) and 19 Alternates. 
3.31% of the 4,049 Delegate Votes.

Clinton  |  Obama
former: Edwards - Former U.S. Sen. John Edwards ended his campaign on Jan. 30, 2008. >

Republicans
69 Delegates: 3 RNC, 27 at-large, 39 CD (3 x 13 CDs).
2.90% of the 2,380 Delegates.

McCain
former: Huckabee

General Election -- Tuesday, November 2, 2004

+Bush/Cheney (Rep.)
1,961,166 
(56.02)
Kerry/Edwards (Dem.)
1,525,849 
(43.58)
Badnarik/Campagna (Lib.) 11,731 (0.34)
Ralph Nader (w/in)
1,805 
(0.05)
Brown/Herbert (w/in)
348 
(0.01)
David Cobb (w/in)
108 
Total........3,501,007
 




2004 Overview
The Democratic ticket has not carried North Carolina since Jimmy Carter did in 1976, but Sen. Kerry's selection of Sen. Edwards as his running mate put the Tar Heel State into play.  However the result was nearly the same as in 2000, as Bush amassed a plurality of 435,317 votes (12.44 percentage points).
General Election Details
Kerry/Allies  |  Bush-Cheney '04
(Primary: July 20, 2004.  In Feb. 2004, the Board of Elections moved the primary back from May 4, 2004 because legislative district boundaries had yet to be approved).
 
Past Results
1996
Dole (Rep.)...........1,225,938
(48.73)
Clinton (Dem.).......1,107,849
(44.04)
Perot (Ref.)..............168,059
(6.68)
Others (2+w/ins)........13,961
(0.55)
Total........2,515,807

1992
Bush (Rep.)..........1,134,661
(43.34)
Clinton (Dem.).......1,114,042
(42.65)
Perot (Unaff.)...........357,864
(13.70)
Others (Marrou+w/ins).5,283 
(0.21)
Total........2,611,850

2000
Gore/Lieberman (Dem.)
1,257,692
(43.20)
+Bush/Cheney (Rep.)
1,631,163
(56.03)
Browne/Olivier (Lib.)
12,307
(0.42)
Buchanan/Foster (Ref.)
8,874
(0.30)
McReynolds/Hollis
1,226
(0.04)
Total........2,911,262

In 1999, the NC General Assembly passed legislation to allow in-person, no-excuse absentee voting.  A voter could vote at any designated Absentee One-Stop voting site in his or her county from Oct. 16 to Nov. 3, 2000. 393,152 people did so.  In addition there were 72,447 civilian absentee by mail votes and 3,766 military absentee returns.

2000 Overview
North Carolina, which went Republican by a very narrow margin in 1992, and a close but wider margin in 1996, went solidly into the GOP column in 2000, as Bush-Cheney secured a plurality of 373,471 votes (12.83 percentage points).  Bush carried 75 counties to 25 for Gore.  Bush won every county in the western part of the state and all the counties along the coast; Gore carried a cluster of 8 counties in the SE and another cluster of 17 counties in the NE.  North Carolina did not see much activity at the presidential level, with the exception of the second presidential debate, held on Oct. 11 at Wake Forest University.
General Election Activity

Notes: North Carolina's onerous ballot access requirements -- 51,324 signatures by May 17, 2000 -- resulted in a limited range of choices for the state's voters.  After the Nader campaign fell short, it went to court seeking an injunction to put him on the ballot.  U.S. District Judge W. Earl Britt turned down their request (Aug. 9 ruling), and an appeal to the 4th Circuit likewise proved unsuccessful (Sept. 15).


 
Democrats: Caucuses April 17, 2004 107 delegates and 14 alternates.
Republicans: No contest.
 

2004 page >
2000 page >

Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008  Eric M. Appleman/Democracy in Action.