As of Tuesday night, former president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has won North Carolina's electoral votes, leading by a margin of 3.2 votes. Trump’s lead in the state is by 180,264 votes with 98% of the vote counted, a pivotal gain in his quest to secure 270 electoral votes for a potential return to the White House. Polls across North Carolina closed at 7:30 p.m., with results slowly trickling in and AP calling the race at around 11:20 p.m.
North Carolina, a key battleground state that has voted red in the last three presidential elections, awards 16 critical electoral votes. The last time the state voted blue was for former President Barack Obama in 2008.
In the weeks leading up to election day, Trump’s campaign concentrated efforts in North Carolina, holding one of his final rallies in Raleigh on Monday before election day.
At the rally, he spent the majority of his speech discussing crime rates among immigrants, a tactic which appeals to conservative voters concerned with national security.
Throughout the campaign season, Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris ran a close race, with polling data reflecting a near tie in North Carolina just days before Election Day. The state’s results mark a crucial win for Trump, and his easiest path to the White House includes additional victories in other closely contested states, particularly Pennsylvania and Georgia.
“Everyone is just incredibly excited with the results we are seeing out of these battleground states, particularly North Carolina, and Georgia,” UNC College Republicans President Matthew Trott said. “The results seem to indicate a Trump win, reminiscent of a 2016 level of support.”
In 2016, Trump clinched North Carolina by a 3.6 percent margin. This lead narrowed significantly in 2020, when he defeated current President Joe Biden by only 1.3 percent.
Trott said that counties that previously voted for Biden, such as Anson County, are now projected to be voting for Trump, and people hoping for a Trump win are excited about it. He said the margins look much larger than people thought, and there is a huge sense of relief within the watch party being hosted by the UNC College Republicans.
“My family is from western North Carolina,” he said. “[The hurricane] really fired people up to come out and vote for Trump.”
