| NORTH CAROLINA |
15 Electoral Votes |
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| Population
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau, North Carolina State Board of Elections)
North Carolina has: 100 counties. Five largest counties: Mecklenburg, Wake, Guilford, Forsyth, Cumberland. Five largest cities: Charlotte, Raleigh, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Durham. Government
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State of North Carolina State Board of Elections NC Democratic Party The
Charlotte Observer, p  The Tar Heel State |
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| "No
special
circumstance
or reason is needed to receive and vote a mail-in
absentee ballot." North Carolina was the first state to send ballots to voters for the 2020 election: "On Friday, September 4, county boards of elections across North Carolina will begin sending absentee by mail ballots to registered voters who have requested ballots for the November 3 election." - NCSBE North Carolina has one-stop early voting and same-day registration: Oct. 15-31, 2020. > Voters are not required to show photo ID. Litigation Among the issues litigated in advance of the election were the cure process for absentee ballots with deficiencies and the deadline for receipt of postmarked absentee ballots (+). Voting Method
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Overview: North
Carolina was a battleground state featuring competitive races
for president, U.S. Senate and governor. Republicans tabbed Charlotte to host the Republican National Convention from Aug. 24-27, 2020 but President Trump objected to limitation due to the pandemic, and the Queen City ended up with just a business session on Aug. 24 (1, 2). The Trump campaign plied the state with numerous visits by the candidates and surrogates, among the most of any state. North Carolina was third in total spending on presidential advertising from May 1 to Nov. 3 at $154.6 million, behind Florida and Pennsylvania. Trump and allies outspent Biden and allies by $86.6 million to $68.0 million, or 27.4% more. Trump-Pence fell just short of 50-percent but won with a plurality of 74,483 votes (1.34 percentage points), carrying 75 counties to 25 for the Democratic ticket. At the same time Gov. Roy Cooper (D) was re-elected with a plurality of 248,185 votes (4.51 percentage points), carrying 29 counties. Also of note, the Constitution and Green parties lost recognition as political parties in North Carolina after the election as a result of their poor showings (+). General Election Details Trump | Biden [NCSBE] BALLOT [PDF] |
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| Democrats Biden 572,271 (42.95%), Sanders 322,645 (24.22%), Bloomberg 172,558 (12.95%), Warren 139,912 (10.50%)... Total 1,332,382. details 123 Delegates: 72 District, 24 At-Large, 14 PLEO and 13 Unpledged. |
Republicans Trump 750,600 (93.53%), No Pref. 20,085 (2.50%), Walsh 16,356 (2.04%), Weld 15,486 (1.93%). Total: 802,527. |
In the Libertarian primary 6,110
votes were split among 16 candidates; no preference emerged as
the clear winner with 33.09%. The Green (330 votes) and
Constitution Parties (281 votes) also held primaries.
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| 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 |
| Bush 43.34% |
Dole 48.73% |
Bush 56.03% |
Bush 56.02% |
Obama 49.70% |
Romney 50.39% |
Trump 49.83% |
and
the details...
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| Voting
Eligible Population*: 7,318,442. VEP Highest Office Turnout Rate: 64.8%. Voter Registration Deadline: Oct. 14, 2016. *Following Hurricane Matthew, a court ordered the deadline extended to Oct. 19 for 36 counties (+). Absentee voting by mail begins (depending on municipality): Sept. 9, 2016. Turnout by Voting Method >
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Overview: North
Carolina was a battleground state and saw intense
activity by the Democratic and Republican
campaigns. The tight race for
governor and tighter than expected contest for U.S.
Senate also added interest. Democrats and
their allies expressed concerns about voter
suppression. Lower turnout in the black
community and higher turnout among white voters was
a major factor in Trump's success. He carried
76 counties to 24 for Clinton, garnering a plurality
of 164,315 votes (3.66 percentage points); at 49.83%
of total votes tallied he fell just below 50-percent
of the vote. General Election Details Clinton | Trump BALLOT [PDF] |
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| Voting Eligible
Population*: 6,970,868. VEP Highest Office Turnout Rate: 64.6%. Voter Registration Deadline: October 12, 2012 One-Stop Voting: October 18-November 3, 2012
Straight Party Voting Democratic: 1,418,430 Republican: 1,110,390 Libertarian: 25,146 Total: 2,553,966 |
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2012 Overview
Democrats made an early play to keep North Carolina in the blue column, choosing Charlotte to host the 2012 Democratic National Convention. In contrast to 2008, when the McCain and the Republicans paid relatively little attention to the state until late in the campaign, Romney and the RNC were fully engaged. North Carolina was a contested battleground state, with full campaign staffs and plenty of ads, although it did not get as many candidate visits as other contested states and was seen as leaning Republican. By Oct. 18, the News & Observer reported, "Romney campaign begins moving staff out of NC, confident of victory."(+) Romney-Ryan won with a plurality of 92,004 votes (2.04 percentage points), carrying 70 counties to 30 for the Democratic ticket, and Republicans achieved gains up and down the ballot. General Election Details Obama | Romney BALLOT [PDF] |
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| Voting
Eligible Population*:
6,551,412. VEP Highest Office Turnout Rate: 65.8%.
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2008 Overview Obama-Biden carried North Carolina for the Democrats for the first time since 1976, but it was close, by a plurality of just 14,177 votes (0.32 percentage points). Obama carried 33 counties to 67 for McCain. General Election Details Obama/Allies | McCain/Allies | Nader useful report -PDF |
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| Voting
Eligible Population*:
6,055,771. VEP Highest Office Turnout Rate: 57.8%. Registration: Dem. 2,582,462 (46.78%) Rep. 1,903,199 (34.48%) Lib. 12,754 (0.23%) Unaffil. 1,021,648 (18.51%) ...Total 5,519,992 |
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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 |
| General Election -- Tuesday, November 7, 2000 |
| Voting
Eligible Population*:
5,744,241. VEP Highest Office Turnout Rate: 50.7%. Registration: Dem. 2,588,137 (49.9%) Rep. 1,765,476 (34.0%) Lib. 6,909 (0.1%) Ref. 254 Unaffil. 831,857 (16.0%) ...5,186,094. |
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 |
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| 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). |
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