Trump projected as the winner in North Carolina, according to DDHQ

(NEXSTAR) — Decision Desk HQ projects Donald Trump as the winner in North Carolina in the 2024 presidential election. The win adds North Carolina's crucial 16 Electoral College votes in the race for 270, the total needed to secure the next presidency. In the early weeks of the general election campaign, North Carolina had appeared well within former President Donald Trump's grasp, but the balance of power shifted when Vice President Kamala Harris replaced President Joe Biden on the ticket. During the final weeks of polling, many surveys showed the former president with a lead of less than 1% in the state, well within the margin of error for nearly every sampling. North Carolina was one of seven states seen as up for grabs this election cycle, joining Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona and Nevada. Each candidate had multiple paths to 270 Electoral College votes based on the outcomes in these states.

This election cycle, the race for governor also carried the potential to swing turnout. Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson and Democratic state Attorney General Josh Stein were running to replace Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who is term-limited. Robinson has denied a CNN report that he posted explicit messages on a pornography web site more than a decade ago.

Since the allegations surfaced, many of his campaign staff members have resigned and he was excluded from a Trump campaign event in Wilmington. Some feared the scandal could diminish GOP turnout in the state.

Since 1968, Democratic presidential candidates have carried North Carolina only twice: in 1976 and 2008. Nonetheless, the state has been competitive in recent years. Trump carried North Carolina twice but with less than 50% of the vote each time. He edged Biden in 2020 by about one percentage point, his smallest winning margin in any state.

There are no automatic recounts in North Carolina, but candidates may request and pay for one if the margin is less than 0.5% of the total votes or 10,000 votes for statewide races or 1% for non-statewide races.