[County Agent Hank Kimball]

I continue to be baffled as to why North Carolina has ever been considered anything but a gimme for the GOP.

In the biggest Dem election since 1964, NC went 50-49 Obama in 2008. Here is how NC voted in the past 4 presidential elections. The numbers in partnthesis are the national percentages for comparison.

Year         GOP                 Dem
2008     49% (46%)     50% (53%)
2004     56% (51%)     44% (48%)
2000     56% (48%)     43% (48%)
1996     49% (41%)     44% (49%)

In every single election NC voted GOP by significantly higher percentages than the country: by 3%, 5%, 8% and 8%. And of course it voted coreespondingly less for Democrats: by 3%, 4%, 5% and 5%.

So for NC to have been in any way a battleground would have to mean Romney was in for a drubbing. If a state that consistently more GOP than the electorate was in doubt....well, what the hell? How could Romney possibly have a prayer in such a scenario.

My prediction is Rommney beats Filth 53% to 46% in NC.

Hank

[GeronL]

That makes it a bigger question. What were they thinking? Did they think holding their convention there would swing it?

[Renderofveils]

I continue to be baffled as to why North Carolina has ever been considered anything but a gimme for the GOP.

They probably looked at the number of Dims elected governor.

Zebulon Baird Vance January 1, 1877 February 5, 1879 Democrat
Thomas Jordan Jarvis 1879 - 1885 Democrat
Alfred Moore Scales 1885 - 1889 Democrat
Daniel Gould Fowle 1889 - 1891 Democrat
Thomas Michael Holt 1891 - 1893 Democrat
Elias Carr 1893 - 1897 Democrat
Daniel Lindsay Russell 1897 - 1901 Republican
Charles Brantley Aycock 1901 - 1905 Democrat
Robert Broadnax Glenn 1905 - 1909 Democrat
William Walton Kitchin 1909 - 1913 Democrat
Locke Craig 1913 - 1917 Democrat
Thomas Walter Bickett 1917 - 1921 Democrat
Cameron Morrison 1921 - 1925 Democrat
Angus Wilton McLean 1925 - 1929 Democrat
Oliver Max Gardner 1929 - 1933 Democrat
John C.B. Ehringhaus 1933 - 1937 Democrat
Clyde R. Hoey 1937 - 1941 Democrat
J. Melville Broughton 1941 - 1945 Democrat
R. Gregg Cherry 1945 - 1949 Democrat
W. Kerr Scott 1949 - 1953 Democrat
William B. Umstead 1953 - 1954 Democrat
Luther H. Hodges 1954 - 1961 Democrat
Terry Sanford 1961 - 1965 Democrat
Dan K. Moore 1965 - 1969 Democrat
Robert W. Scott 1969 - 1973 Democrat
James E. Holshouser, Jr. 1973 - 1977 Republican
James B. Hunt, Jr. 1977 - 1985 Democrat
James G. Martin 1985 - 1993 Republican
James B. Hunt, Jr. 1993 - 2001 Democrat
Mike Easley 2001 - 2009 Democrat
Beverly Perdue 2009 - present Democrat