Most North Carolina Democrats seem to be less worried than some of their Republican counterparts this year about the potential perils of associating themselves closely with the top of their ticket.
Hillary Clinton is expected to be formally named Democratic nominee for president at next week’s national convention in Philadelphia.
Her campaign is still dealing with shadows cast over her candidacy, related to her use of a private email server while she was U.S. secretary of state. A recent poll from Morning Consult shows about half of voters asked said Clinton’s action were unethical or illegal, though the FBI and Justice Department say there’s not enough evidence to warrant criminal charges.
Still, the email controversy hasn’t pushed most North Carolina Democrat elected officials away from supporting Clinton.
All three Tar Heel State Democrats in Congress, and one hoping to be in the U.S. Senate next year, will attend. Compare that attendance to the handful of the state’s 10 Republicans in the U.S. House who bypassed their party’s convention in Cleveland this week.
Those from North Carolina going to the Democratic National Convention include U.S. Reps. Alma Adams, G.K. Butterfield and David Price, and Senate nominee Deborah Ross – a former state House member and ACLU attorney who is challenging incumbent Sen. Richard Burr, R-Winston-Salem.
Recent polling from a number of groups projects Clinton holds a slight lead in North Carolina over GOP nominee Donald Trump.
Democratic gubernatorial nominee, Attorney General Roy Cooper, is skipping the convention. He’ll be campaigning instead, his spokesman said this week. Earlier this month, Cooper appeared at a Charlotte rally with Clinton and President Barack Obama – a key sign he’s backing the nominee after months of speculation on whether Cooper was holding out an endorsement in case Clinton would be a liability in his race.
Former N.C. Sen. Josh Stein, who resigned after March primaries to run for attorney general, is also not going to the convention. His campaign manager, Seth Dearmin, said Stein will be in several cities across North Carolina next week, talking to potential voters, including a stop at a sheriff’s association meeting in Wilmington.
Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, Linda Coleman, could not be reached to say whether she’s attending the convention.
At the convention, Butterfield will serve as a super-delegate for Clinton. Price and Adams have also voiced support for Clinton as nominee.
North Carolina is a key battleground state in the 2016 presidential race. Obama swept the state in 2008 but lost in 2012. Both election years, North Carolina was one of the closest contests for Obama in the national election.
Recent polling from a number of groups project Clinton holds a slight lead in North Carolina over GOP nominee Donald Trump.
Anna Douglas: 202-383-6012, @ADouglasNews
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