CHARLOTTE, N.C. — All eyes will be on North Carolina Friday as former President Barack Obama and Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance are holding rallies in the Charlotte area.
With the election less than two weeks away, both Democrats and Republicans have ramped up their attention on swing states such as North Carolina, with numerous rallies and campaign stops to sway voters. Obama will campaign for Vice President Kamala Harris in Uptown Friday evening while Vance holds a town hall in Monroe to sell voters on former President Donald Trump's platform.
Expect delays
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police said there won't be any road closures for Obama's visit, but drivers can expect heavy congestion around Charlotte Douglas International Airport, Interstate 277 and the Charlotte Convention Center from 4-9 p.m. on Friday. Obama is scheduled to speak at 7:15.
Vance is scheduled to address supporters at the Charlotte-Monroe Executive Airport at 6:30 p.m. Vance has made several trips to the Charlotte area lately, most recently appearing at the Bank of America ROVAL 400 NASCAR race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Officials haven't said how Vance's visit will impact traffic, but drivers should expect delays and congestion in the area of U.S. 74 and Rocky River Road in Monroe.
Why North Carolina matters so much in the 2024 election
Experts say the 2024 presidential election will be won through swing states, such as North Carolina. Several states, including Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania, are so close that they could go either direction. Some experts say it could all come down to North Carolina and its 16 electoral votes.
Looking at the history of North Carolina, it's been a stronghold for Republicans. Trump won the state by 3% in 2016, but the gap shrunk to just over 1% in 2020. With the Tar Heel State so tightly contested, both Harris and Trump have poured tons of time, money and resources into winning the state.
Scott Huffmon, a political science professor at Winthrop University, says the reason we're seeing Democrats perform better in North Carolina is simple math. As more people move here, that raises the number of Democrats in a traditionally red state. Obama is the only Democrat to have won North Carolina in the last 40 years, narrowly defeating John McCain in 2008. Obama failed to carry the state in 2012 despite winning reelection over Mitt Romney.
"A lot of the in-migration to North Carolina has been to the city centers, the larger cities. They've been younger folks," Huffmon explained. "They've been coming for jobs and they tend to lean a little more Democratic. So the demographic change that we have seen in North Carolina over the past four years puts it a little more in play this time and very critical to both candidates' plans for success."
A new WalletHub analysis found that North Carolina voters are the second-most powerful in the whole country. Several factors went into calculating the "vote power score," but none were as important as the race being a true toss-up.
"If you live in one of these states, you could quite literally have the fate of the election in your hands," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said.