North Carolina Voters Favor Kamala Harris over Trump in First Swing State Exit Poll

The results of North Carolina's first exit poll show the swing state's voters favoring Kamala Harris over Donald Trump.

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris appeared to have an edge over Republican Donald Trump in North Carolina based on preliminary exit polling from Edison Research, Reuters reported. The poll reflects early voter sentiment in the battleground state and captures key shifts in issues and demographics compared to the 2020 election.

In the poll, 48% of North Carolina voters expressed a favorable view of Harris, a slight decline from the 50% who had a favorable opinion of then-candidate Joe Biden in 2020. Trump's favorability also declined, with 43% of voters viewing him positively compared to 47% in 2020. His unfavorable rating rose to 55% from 51% in the previous election cycle.

Economic concerns took center stage, with 36% of voters identifying the economy as the most important issue in the election, while 32% prioritized the state of democracy, reflecting 73% of voters who said they think democracy in the U.S. is threatened. Additionally, 47% of voters reported their family's financial situation was worse than four years ago, a notable increase from the 20% who reported financial difficulties in 2020.

The polling also highlighted demographic changes among North Carolina voters. A higher percentage of voters had college degrees (42%, up from 36% in 2020), and the racial composition of the electorate shifted as well. White voters accounted for 69% of the voting population, up from 65% in 2020, while Black voter representation declined to 19% from 23%.

Notably, the gender distribution showed a slight shift, with women making up 52% of voters, down from 56% in 2020, and men rising to 48% from 44%.

Exit polling provides a snapshot of voter behavior and sentiment on Election Day and throughout early voting, with results subject to shifting as more responses are processed and further insights emerge from other battleground states.