Poll: Trump and Carson neck-and-neck in NC

Donald Trump leads Ben Carson by less than 1 point among GOP voters in North Carolina, according to an Elon University poll released on Saturday.

The real-estate mogul leads the pack in the Tar Heel State with 21.5 percent support, followed closely by the retired neurosurgeon with 20.9 percent support.

{mosads}Businesswoman Carly Fiorina places third in the state with 9.9 percent support, followed by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) at 7.4 percent support, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush with 7 percent support, and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) with 6.7 percent support.

While Trump is still the top choice among Republicans, Carson appears to have broader appeal.

Carson handily defeats Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton by 11 points head-to-head, while Clinton bests Trump in a hypothetical general election matchup by 7 points.

The poll attributes this to Carson’s comparative strength over Trump with women and independent voters in the state.

Bush also trumps Clinton in a hypothetical matchup by a 46 to 42.6 percent margin.

Indeed, Republicans with the exception of Trump fare well in the state, which may be attributed to President Obama’s unpopularity among North Carolina voters.

Over half of all respondents, 50.6 percent, say they disapprove of the president’s job performance in office, while just 41.6 percent approve.

The Elon University survey polled 1,075 registered voters in North Carolina from Sept. 17-21. The poll has a margin of error of 2.99 among results drawing from all voters and 4.31 for the Republican primary results.