PPP - Burr leads by double digits (!) against everyone

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Burr 45 Miller 34
Burr 46 Cowell 35
Burr 47 Blue 36
Burr 50 Hagan 38
Burr 46 Martin 32
Burr 46 Jackson 30
http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2015/04/nc-governors-race-close.html

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

NC probably won't even be competitive in 2016. It IS no "swing state" after all and this Senate race should be rated Likely Republican. However, Burr is by no means safe, he could still end up like Dole or Hagan.

Yep. In 2008, what everyone thought was NC becoming purple was just really part of the purple-atlas blue pattern it has had since the election of John Edwards in 1998 - the margins aren't that big and dems get a lucky break sometimes, but a clear republican leaning does exist.

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

It's tilt Republican but Democrats would be stupid to not try to knock off Burr. I think his horrific relations with veterans groups will hurt him in a state that has a lot of military bases.

They shouldn't give up on the race, but Burr is no longer a prime target.

Republican Seats up in 2016 (from most to least vulnerable):

1. IL
2. WI
3. PA
4. FL (Majority with Dem. President)
5. NH (Majority with Rep. President)
6. OH
7. NC
8. AZ
9. IN
10. MO
11. GA
12. KY
13. AK
14. LA (Filibuster-Proof Majority)
15. IA
16. UT
17. AR
18. SD
19. ND
20. SC
21. KS (Veto-Proof Majority)
22. AL
23. ID
24. OK

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

NC probably won't even be competitive in 2016. It IS no "swing state" after all and this Senate race should be rated Likely Republican. However, Burr is by no means safe, he could still end up like Dole or Hagan.

Yep. In 2008, what everyone thought was NC becoming purple was just really part of the purple-atlas blue pattern it has had since the election of John Edwards in 1998 - the margins aren't that big and dems get a lucky break sometimes, but a clear republican leaning does exist.

What the heck are you talking about? North Carolina has been trending Democratic for years now.

Maybe slightly, but it is not a purple state. It has been purple-atlas blue since 98, and that remains true today.

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

NC probably won't even be competitive in 2016. It IS no "swing state" after all and this Senate race should be rated Likely Republican. However, Burr is by no means safe, he could still end up like Dole or Hagan.

Yep. In 2008, what everyone thought was NC becoming purple was just really part of the purple-atlas blue pattern it has had since the election of John Edwards in 1998 - the margins aren't that big and dems get a lucky break sometimes, but a clear republican leaning does exist.

What the heck are you talking about? North Carolina has been trending Democratic for years now.

Maybe slightly, but it is not a purple state. It has been purple-atlas blue since 98, and that remains true today.

Obviously you're confused. North Carolina was not competitive in 2000 and 2004, hence it was not a purple state.
But it was in 2008 and 2012, hence it was.

Also, following your logic Illinois is a purple state since it elected Mark Kirk.

Again, purple-blue/red, not purple. Neither NC nor IL are purple states, but looking at presidential and senate combined, it is unfair to categorize them as solid red/blue, so the purple-blue/red state defintion is used. The only state that is solid one way or the other despite a recent counterexample in presidential/senate races is MA, to which I grant a special exception because Coakley was a beyond horrible nominee.