President 2012 North Carolina Poll Watch: Obama 48% Vs. Huckabee 47%

Job Approval Vs. Disapproval:

President Barack Obama – 49% Vs.48%

Favorable Vs. Unfavorable:

Newt Gingrich – 31% Vs. 50%
Mike Huckabee – 42% Vs. 37%
Sarah Palin – 33% Vs. 60%
Mitt Romney – 31% Vs. 44%
Donald Trump – 27% Vs. 62%

The General Election:

Obama – 48% Vs. Huckabee – 47%
Obama – 47% Vs. Romney 44%
Obama – 49% Vs. Gingrich – 45%
Obama – 52% Vs. Palin – 40%
Obama – 51% Vs. Trump – 39%

PPP polling seems to think that the President is holding his own in North Carolina. But, in this point in the race for 2012, Obama is not looking particularly strong in a key battleground state that the GOP nominee must win.

Barack Obama’s poll numbers nationwide aren’t looking very good right now but one place where he’s holding up pretty well is North Carolina. His approval rating there this month is 49%, with 48% of voters disapproving. Those numbers basically mirror the results of the 2008 election in the state, pretty good given that in our national polling right now his approval spread is running 13 points behind his margin of victory against John McCain.

There are two data points key to Obama’s continued decent standing in North Carolina. In most places Obama has maintained his popularity with minorities but seen a significant decline in his popularity with white voters. Here though his 37% approval rating with whites matches the percentage of the vote we found him winning in 2008 and that combined with his 87% standing with black voters puts him on slightly positive ground overall. The other key thing for Obama is that he’s at 50/44 with independents here, basically matching his 2008 victory margin over McCain in the state with those voters and running counter to his 37/54 approval breakdown with them nationally.

Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney are both withn the margin of error (4.4%) in the polls with an uncumbent President. Huckabee has NOT even made overtures to run for the office. This isn’t saying much about Obama’s strength.

The PPP polling folks, a Democratic pollster, are having some delusions of grandeur here. Obama is in trouble.

The entire poll is here.