OFF THE WIRE
http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/07/16/poll-motorcycle-turned-abortion-bill-hurts-north-carolina-gop-approval/
Poll: Motorcycle-turned-abortion bill hurts North Carolina GOP approval
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory’s approval numbers turned
negative this month for the first time since taking office, according to a new
PPP poll.
According to the poll, only 40% of voters are happy with the
job McCrory is doing, while 49% disapprove—a turn from the previous month, which
showed that 45% of voters approved of the governor and 39% disapproved. PPP
reports that, while the governor’s numbers are steady among fellow Republicans,
McCrory is quickly losing support from Democrats and independents.
The response, PPP finds, is due in large part to McCrory’s and
the Republican Party’s handling of a controversial abortion bill passed by the
state Legislature last week. “The abortion bill seems to be the final straw for
a lot of voters when it comes to the Republicans in state government,” said PPP
president Dean Debnam in the latest report.
PPP’s poll shows that 34% of voters support the bill, while
47% oppose it, and 80% of voters found the process of inserting abortion
language into bills about motorcycle safety and Sharia Law inappropriate.
Debnam adds, “Voters don’t like the process that led to it and
they’re starting to really take it out on Pat McCrory.”
A majority of voters also agree that McCrory should stick to
his promise to veto the bill—a promise that looks to be empty after last
Friday’s announcement that the governor will sign the bill into law.
The poll results conclude that the North Carolina Republican
Party could face an uphill battle in 2014 and could lose their majority in the
state Legislature. The GOP’s rising unpopularity in North Carolina, however, has
created a stronger support among voters for the Moral Monday protests that have
been organized to fight back against the state’s attempts to restrict abortion
rights, with 47% in support of those being arrested and 40% opposed.
