New poll identifies Goolsby seat as "swing district" in 2012
NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WECT) - A new poll released Tuesday says a majority of North Carolinians disapprove of the job done by the North Carolina General Assembly. The same poll puts Wilmington Mayor Bill Saffo even with incumbent Senator Thom Goolsby if the race for the District 9 seat were held today.
[See complete poll results (PDF)]
This is one in a series of polls commissioned by Progress NC, a non-profit group funded by donors which is concentrating on what it calls "progressive" issues important to North Carolina.
"We are trying to answer the question 'can progressives re-take the North Carolina General Assembly?," said Justin Guillory, Research and Communications Director for the organization. "We find local community leaders that would be potential candidates in swing districts across the state."
On whether voters would select Senator Goolsby or Saffo for the District 9 seat, both men polled at 44% percent, with the remaining 12 percent selecting "not sure".
When polled about the job performance of the General Assembly, 57% of the responders said they disapproved, with 22% approving and the rest saying either "not sure" or having "no opinion".
The poll identifies the 518 responders as 39% Republican, 38% Democrat and 22% Independent/Other. It was conducted between January 14-16, 2012, according to a release by Progress NC.
Guillory said Progress NC has identified several "swing districts" across North Carolina, based on its own analysis and other factors.
Attempts to contact Saffo to ask whether he plans to run against Goolsby in the District 9 race have been unsuccessful so far today.
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