Democratic Senate Primary Race in North Carolina Too Close to Call

North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall continues to lead former state Sen. Cal Cunningham in the race for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, but with a third of voters still undecided with the approach of Tuesday's primary, the outcome is still up in the air, according to a Public Policy Polling survey conducted May 1-2.

Marshall, the first woman to hold statewide elected office, is running ahead of Cunningham by 28 percent to 21 percent, with Democratic fundraiser and organizer Ken Lewis far behind at 9 percent. Three other candidates are in low single digits and 33 percent are undecided.

Marshall has gained three points since last week, mostly due to a shift of black voters from Cunningham to her.

Thirty-nine percent of voters say they could still change their minds.

Should the race be forced into a runoff because none of the candidates earned 50 percent, 43 percent of voters say they would back Marshall, compared to 32 percent for Cunningham with 25 percent undecided.

"Beyond the fact that Marshall and Cunningham will be the top two finishers on Tuesday, we can't say how this will shake out," said PPP's Dean Debnam. "The high level of undecideds mean you can't count Cunningham out, and there's still a distinct chance we'll be going another seven weeks to get a winner."

The Democratic nominee will face first-term Republican Sen. Richard Burr. A Rasmussen Reports poll in mid-April showed Burr with double-digit leads over both Marshall and Cunningham.

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