looks like Bowles is going to take this one.
Yes, Bowles has led comfortably in every poll since he announced his candidacy. James Carville is breathing a sigh of relief after he claimed on the afternoon of the 2002 general election that Bowles was beating E. Dole in NC. Bowles is helped by his wealth and name ID. Also, helping Bowles is the popularity of the NC Democrat governor, who is also on the ballot this year.
Yes, Burr will win by about 4-5 points.
We (NC) seem to go for DEMs on the local/state level, but tend to Republican on the national level. I don't know why, other than our current governor (a Dem) would probably be considered a Republican in the Northeast or the left coast. Perhaps not a Zell Miller, but definitely not a John Kerry/John Edwards. Understand this, it was unlikely that Edwards would have kept his seat, and the only way he won it was that his opponent was a crook. Yes, there are crooks on the right side of the aisle and Edwards was in the right place at the right time.
I really think that Burr's success will hinge upon Bush's. Bowles definitely has name recognition, but if more people in NC realized just how far inside the Clinton admin that Bowles was, he would probably find a losing margin similar to that of Kerry (in NC). Clinton is not very popular (as a person, anyway). Some of that negativism would certainly fall upon Bowles if Burr could make that stick.
It looks bad for Burr right now. Burr put on an ad biltz since July, but it hasn't helped much. Bowles still has a sizeable lead. Its not impossible, but Burr will have to tie Bowles to Clinton and Kerry. Burr doesn't have the charm of Liddy Dole to win over the old-style dems, especially in the eastern part of the state. Burr is from Winston Salem and if a Republican doesn't get the old style dems east of I95, they don't win. That is who puts NC in the republican column for President and elected Jesse Helms
Bowles has got this going for him: his name begins with a "B". People will get confused with the three-B's and all.
I just don't get this race. Irksome Bowels is a proven loser (in 2002) and a Clintonite. Burr, as far as I know, is a solid Conservative. It's as if there's something negative about Burr that I don't know about sitting here in Texas. What's the deal????