Gov. Bev Perdue's approval ratings have tumbled backward after showing slight improvement during the first three months of the year, according to Public Policy Polling.
The Democratic polling firm found that 28 percent of those surveyed approve of the job Perdue is doing, while 52 percent disapprove. That's down from a 32-47 split a month ago.
The anti-incumbent sentiment among voters remains strong, and Perdue, a Democrat, didn't even break 50 percent approval within her own party: 44 percent of Democrats approve, while 33 percent disapprove.
"If Perdue's numbers continue to be this poor, she's likely to be a drag on Democratic legislative candidates this fall," PPP Director Tom Jensen wrote.
The firm's survey this month found voters preferring Republican legislative candidates 45 percent to 42 percent, thanks to a 47 percent-to-18 percent lead among independents.
Endorsements
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Ken Lewis has picked up more endorsements.
Lewis, a Chapel Hill lawyer, has been endorsed by the Raleigh-Wake Citizens Association, which advocates for issues important to blacks. Lewis also has picked up the endorsement of the Independent Weekly.
Meanwhile, Cal Cunningham, a Lexington lawyer and Iraq war veteran, has been endorsed by the Winston-Salem Journal.
Lewis has collected a significant slate of endorsements from notable African-American political figures and organizations, but those endorsements don't yet appear to have moved his poll numbers.
According to a poll in April by Public Policy Polling, Lewis is seen favorably by 14 percent of black Democrats, the same percentage that see him unfavorably. The poll found that 72 percent of black Democrats are unsure of their opinion of Lewis.
Time wasn't ripe for gun
State House Rep. Nick Mackey, a Charlotte Democrat, may still raffle off a rifle or shotgun as a fundraiser.
Mackey ordered raffle tickets for a gun raffle at the end of October but ended up not holding the event as Christmas drew near.
"When I talked to people, the people who buy guns and are hunters, it was not the right time of year for them," Mackey said. "It just wasn't the right time for people to have money to buy raffle tickets."
Mackey acknowledged that Second Amendment enthusiasts such as himself are more common among Republicans.
"I don't have any problems with the gun lobby and the NRA and hunters," he said. "We agree on most things."
He may still have the gun raffle this summer, if he wins his primary race. In the meantime he's planning to raffle a TV.
Talk on health care law
U.S. Rep. John Spratt, the South Carolina Democrat who leads the House Budget Committee, will deliver a speech on the new health care law at UNC-Chapel Hill at 5 p.m. today.
Spratt is appearing for the Charleston Area Alumni Lecture organized by the Center for the Study of the American South. Spratt, first elected in 1982, represents South Carolina's 5th district, which stretches from the suburban counties south of Charlotte over to Dillon and the neon-painted "South of the Border" along Interstate 95.
The speech will be delivered in the Tate-Turner-Kuralt Building auditorium. The event is free and open to the public, but parking is limited.
By staff writers Mark Johnson and Benjamin Niolet
