Congressional Quarterly has downgraded John McCain's chances here. The Washington-based news service had previously listed North Carolina as "Republican Favored" but now ranks the state as the more competitive "Leans Republican."
Staffer Greg Giroux writes that Democrat Barack Obama still has an uphill climb in North Carolina and Indiana based on past elections:
"Still, it would take quite a leap for Obama to switch those two states from Republican red to Democratic blue on those Election Night electoral vote maps. While [George] Bush won Virginia by an 8 percentage-point margin, he carried North Carolina by 12 points -- even though Democratic vice presidential nominee [John] Edwards represented the state in the Senate -- and took Indiana by a 21-point margin."
Read the complete story at newsobserver.com