‘Tillis Tanking, Tucker Rising Among Primary Voters,’ the headline read.

The  poll by Public Policy Polling showed Garland Tucker had gained on Thom Tillis again, now trailing Tillis by just 7 points in the Republican Primary. (Tillis 38%, Tucker 31%, Undecided 31%).

Worse for Tillis, his popularity with Republicans had plummeted for the second time in a month: Tillis had dropped 42 points in Garland Tucker’s July poll. In the PPP poll, in August, he had dropped another 26 points. (Tillis Favorable 34%, Unfavorable 38%.)

A candidate who has the misfortune of receiving more ‘Unfavorables’ than ‘Favorables’ is what pollsters call ‘upside down.’

The first Republican Primary in North Carolina I was part of was in 1976 – I’m in another now with Garland and this is the only time in 43 years I’ve seen a Republican U.S. Senator underwater with Republican voters. Compare Thom Tillis’ popularity with Republicans to Donald Trump’s. Trump is +74 points. Tillis’ is -4.

Back in 1976, Ronald Reagan challenged President Gerald Ford in the Republican primary in North Carolina. Ford’s Favorables were never upside-down like Tillis’. But Ford, the incumbent, lost.

For years Thom Tillis, being Thom Tillis, has straddled the fence: In Washington he voted to increase the debt and opposed cutting foreign aid spending but, then, he told voters in North Carolina how he lays in bed at night worrying about the national debt.

Now, with Garland Tucker pointing beyond Tillis’ words to his votes – like supporting citizenship for illegal immigrants – in the primary, Tillis is turning somersaults in the opposite direction, struggling to appeal to conservative voters. But instead of fooling voters flip-flopping has left Tillis upside-down.