The second debate between Gov. Pat McCrory and Attorney General Roy Cooper takes place tonight at 7 p.m. It will be a chance for undecided voters to help make up their minds and for the decided voters to pull for their candidate and hope for a decisive victory in a hotly contested gubernatorial race.
McCrory is hoping to be reelected in spite of the debacle that is HB2, which continues to cause economic damage to the state and emotional damage to the LGBTQ and ally community.
The race is being watched across the country, with many seeing it as a referendum on LGBTQ rights that could have a nationwide impact for the message it sends if McCrory is defeated. Hillary Clinton has spoken out against both McCrory, who has campaigned with Donald Trump, and HB2.
Cooper has begun to pull away in recent polls, but it remains close enough that it is still anyone’s to win.
Cooper and McCrory debated in June at the North Carolina Bar Association convention in Charlotte. WRAL-TV announced it will air a three-way debate between McCrory, Cooper and Libertarian Lon Cecil in Raleigh on Oct. 18.
Chuck Todd moderates tonight’s debate.
Update (10/11 9 p.m.) – The debate has ended. You can watch it below.
