By Josh Bergeron

josh.bergeron@salisburypost.com

There’s no doubt the election is close, but is incumbent Gov. Pat McCrory falling behind in the gubernatorial race?

Two polls released last week showed Democratic Challenger Roy Cooper beating McCrory across North Carolina. One is technically a statistical tie — Cooper’s lead is a within the poll’s margin of error. In the second, released Friday, Cooper has a seven-point lead.

In the Real Clear Politics average of polling data, Cooper has a one-percent lead over McCrory.

Released Wednesday, a survey of 830 likely voters by Public Policy Polling shows Cooper with a 43 percent of support. McCrory received 42 percent of the support in Public Policy Polling’s survey.

An NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll conducted by the Marist Institute and released Friday surveyed 921 likely voters. Its results found Cooper with a 51-44 lead over McCrory. The poll shows one of the most significant leads Cooper has seen in recent polls tracks by Real Clear Politics.

Ross gets first lead over Burr

It’s not outside of the margin of error, but the NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll also showed Democratic Party challenger Deborah Ross beating incumbent Sen. Richard Burr, a Republican, in North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race.

Just one month earlier, Burr was winning by a margin of 48 to 31. Friday’s poll suggests Ross has closed the gap and perhaps even taken the lead. The poll shows Ross with a 46-percent-to-44-percent lead. With a margin of error equalling 3.2 percentage points, however, Ross’ lead is essentially a tie.

Hudson announces poverty tour

U.S. Rep Richard Hudson next week will tour the newly redrawn 8th Congressional District to tout a policy package introduced by House Speaker Paul Ryan.

Hudson, a Republican from Concord, announced the tour on Friday.

He’s scheduled to stop in at the Baptist Children’s Home of N.C. in Moore County on Monday. On Tuesday, he’s scheduled to attend an opioid abuse roundtable at Fayetteville City Hall and accept an award from the Centralina Workforce Development Board at an event at the NC Research Campus. From 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Hudson is scheduled to participate in a nonprofit roundtable at the Cabarrus County Chamber of Commerce — 3003 Dale Earnhardt Boulevard in Kannapolis.

Called “A Better Way,” the Ryan policy package includes ideas about a variety of topics, including poverty. The poverty-specific part of  “A Better Way” includes plans to increase portability of housing assistance so people can move to find jobs, raises money in collaboration with private companies for social programs, reform child nutrition programs in order to provide easy access to healthy meals and passing reforms that promote access to affordable retirement advice.

Contact reporter Josh Bergeron at 704-797-4246.