Polls: Trump leads over Haley ahead of NC primary

Aside from the presidential race taking place this year, North Carolina will also be electing the highest office in the state, governor. Among other notable races this election cycle are the race for lieutenant governor and attorney general. For a full list of races in your county, check the North Carolina State Board of Elections website.

Here's what polls say the pulse of North Carolina is ahead of the primary on March 5.

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Who's leading in the presidential race?

Republican primary: FiveThirtyEight, which uses an average of several polls, reported Donald Trump leading Nikki Haley with 76.1% of the vote and Haley with 19.7% on Feb. 21. Director of a North Carolina based poll, Meredith Poll, David McLennan, said in the report that despite Republican dropouts, Haley has yet to pull ahead.

Trump, Biden faceoff: Despite the primary still ahead, President Joe Biden and Trump have already been pitted against each other for the general election race. McLennan, of the Meredith Poll, said if that race were to occur, Donald Trump leads over Biden with 44% of the vote compared to Biden's 39% in North Carolina. McLennan noted, though, that Trump's unknown future with his several trials leaves room for uncertainty and movement in the future.

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How does NC stack up against the nation?

In a national poll completed in February by Emerson College, the hypothetical faceoff of Biden and Trump in the general election is close. Biden received 44% and Trump 45% with 11% undecided.

What about down-ballot races?

The highest seat in North Carolina is up for grabs, and the race is heating up between Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein and Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson.

Republican gubernatorial race: There are several other Republican candidates running for governor this year, but none have received more than 9 percent, according to a January Meredith Poll. About 34% of Republican primary polled voters expressed interest in voting for Mark Robinson.

Notably, 42% of polled voters said they were undecided on the race.

Democratic gubernatorial race: Current Attorney General Josh Stein leads in the Democratic primary polls with 31% of the votes. Stein's competitor, former Supreme Court associate justice Mike Morgan, trails behind with 4% of the vote. Over half, 51%, of polled Democratic primary voters are undecided.

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What is voter turnout looking like?

A high number of Republican and Democratic primary voters are undecided. Historically, primary elections bring out a smaller turnout than general elections.

"The high number of undecided voters in both the Democratic and Republican samples shows that many North Carolina voters are simply not focused on state politics at this time," according to a Meredith Poll report. "That is not unusual with primary elections drawing relatively few voters to the polls. The fact that neither primary campaign is particularly competitive might mean a lower-than-average turnout for the primary."

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Donald Trump holds lead over Nikki Haley in NC primary, polls say