Why is Cooper Up by 10?
As Paige Masten wrote in The Charlotte Observer, our statewide poll showed Roy Cooper twice as far ahead in the U.S. Senate race as did another recent poll.
She noted, “In the latest poll, conducted by Change Research, Cooper leads Michael Whatley, the likely Republican nominee, by 50% to 40%. A poll released last month showed Cooper leading by five percentage points.”
That poll, by Carolina Forward, showed Cooper up 47-42%.
The different numbers, I believe, come from the different wording of the two polls’ questions.
Carolina Forward asked, “If the election for U.S. Senate were held today, and the candidates were the following, who would you vote for: Roy Cooper, the Democrat, or Michael Whatley, the Republican?”
We deliberately gave our poll’s respondents a little more information.
We asked (Q13), “If the election for U.S. Senate were today, and the candidates were the following, who would you vote for? Roy Cooper – the Democrat – governor of North Carolina from 2017 through 2025, or Michael Whatley – the Republican – former chairman of the Republican National Committee.”
We did that because, as the poll showed, voters know little about Whatley: 47% said they’d never heard of him.
A month before the March 3 primary, even 42% of Republicans said they’d never heard of him.
Apparently, Whatley loses 5 points when people learn one simple thing: He’s former chair of the Republican National Committee.
Cooper not only is well-known, he’s better-liked than any of a dozen politicians we tested: He has a 42-37% favorable-unfavorable rating.
He and Governor Josh Stein were the only two public figures with positive ratings. Stein has 38% favorable to 34%% unfavorable.
Unfortunately, for Whatley, the Cooper campaign has a lot more ammunition to use.
Trump isn’t popular, as the poll showed, and Whatley is lashed to him like Ahab to the whale.
He also can’t escape MAGA, which has a 55-31% unfavorable rating.
And wait until Cooper tags Whatley for his career as a lobbyist for Big Oil.
Whatley will try to paint Cooper as “a card-carrying member of that woke mob.”
But, as conservative columnist Andrew Dunn wrote recently, it will be hard to convince voters that the two-term former governor is an extremist.
When the missiles fly, Whatley may end up like one of those Venezuelan fishing boats – blown to smithereens.
Why is Cooper Up by 10?
As Paige Masten wrote in The Charlotte Observer, our statewide poll showed Roy Cooper twice as far ahead in the U.S. Senate race as did another recent poll.
She noted, “In the latest poll, conducted by Change Research, Cooper leads Michael Whatley, the likely Republican nominee, by 50% to 40%. A poll released last month showed Cooper leading by five percentage points.”
That poll, by Carolina Forward, showed Cooper up 47-42%.
The different numbers, I believe, come from the different wording of the two polls’ questions.
Carolina Forward asked, “If the election for U.S. Senate were held today, and the candidates were the following, who would you vote for: Roy Cooper, the Democrat, or Michael Whatley, the Republican?”
We deliberately gave our poll’s respondents a little more information.
We asked (Q13), “If the election for U.S. Senate were today, and the candidates were the following, who would you vote for? Roy Cooper – the Democrat – governor of North Carolina from 2017 through 2025, or Michael Whatley – the Republican – former chairman of the Republican National Committee.”
We did that because, as the poll showed, voters know little about Whatley: 47% said they’d never heard of him.
A month before the March 3 primary, even 42% of Republicans said they’d never heard of him.
Apparently, Whatley loses 5 points when people learn one simple thing: He’s former chair of the Republican National Committee.
Cooper not only is well-known, he’s better-liked than any of a dozen politicians we tested: He has a 42-37% favorable-unfavorable rating.
He and Governor Josh Stein were the only two public figures with positive ratings. Stein has 38% favorable to 34%% unfavorable.
Unfortunately, for Whatley, the Cooper campaign has a lot more ammunition to use.
Trump isn’t popular, as the poll showed, and Whatley is lashed to him like Ahab to the whale.
He also can’t escape MAGA, which has a 55-31% unfavorable rating.
And wait until Cooper tags Whatley for his career as a lobbyist for Big Oil.
Whatley will try to paint Cooper as “a card-carrying member of that woke mob.”
But, as conservative columnist Andrew Dunn wrote recently, it will be hard to convince voters that the two-term former governor is an extremist.
When the missiles fly, Whatley may end up like one of those Venezuelan fishing boats – blown to smithereens.