Polls Split on Size of Cooper’s Lead in North Carolina Senate Race
Two surveys released hours apart present sharply different pictures of Michael Whatley’s standing against Roy Cooper.
Overview
- An online Tipp Insights poll for the League of American Workers conducted Jan. 12–15 shows Cooper leading Whatley 48% to 24% with 27% undecided and reports favorability at 54% for Cooper and 25% for Whatley.
- A separate Carolina Forward survey from Jan. 5–7 finds a tighter contest at 47%–42% in Cooper’s favor with 9% unsure among 1,105 likely voters.
- Whatley’s campaign dismissed the Tipp Insights result as an outlier and argued the race remains highly competitive.
- The Washington Examiner cites the RealClearPolitics average showing Cooper ahead by 8.6 points at 46.6% to 38%.
- Carolina Forward’s polling also places Whatley atop the GOP primary at 36%, and fourth-quarter reports show Cooper raised $9.5 million to Whatley’s $5.1 million.