(The Center Square) – As Election Day draws near, gubernatorial candidates Mark Robinson and Josh Stein are giving their last pitches to the voters of North Carolina.
In the last five polls Stein, the Democratic attorney general, is leading the Republican lieutenant governor by an average of 15%, according to data obtained from Project 538.
The race has been contentious with a growing gap, evident in the polling, between support for Robinson and support for former President Donald Trump. While Robinson’s deficit expands, Trump’s slight edge over Democrat Kamala Harris has grown.
Robinson, since Sept. 19, has been battling against a CNN report. He filed a lawsuit against the network saying the claims made in the report were “completely unsubstantiated and defamatory.”
Yet, even though the polling is not favorable for him, Robinson is remaining hopeful, saying a “great awakening” is happening.
“The Harris campaign is getting desperate. They for sure thought the high-tech lynching against me by CNN would somehow deliver North Carolina for Democrats,” Robinson said on social media. “That plan immediately backfired and failed miserably. Republicans are voting in record numbers. They are ready to deliver a red wave for candidates up and down the ballot.”
The race has also had its fair share of personal attacks, with Robinson labeling Stein a “career politician” that supports “radical far-left policies.”
For his part, Stein has said that Robinson is “unfit to be governor” and that the Republican pushes “far-right ideology” and “dangerous conspiracy theories.”
Like Robinson, Stein has also said the momentum is with his party as early voting continues in record numbers.
“Folks – especially young folks – across North Carolina are getting out to vote,” Stein said on social media. “The energy on the ground is real. Together, I know we can and will win this November.”
Since 1896, voters have elected a Republican for governor in North Carolina only three times. Republicans have three-fifths majorities in each the state’s Senate and House of Representatives and Senate.
According to a forecast from Race to the White House, Stein has a 98% chance of winning the governor’s race. This forecast is based on polling and “fundamentals” and has been steadily increasing.
