Inside the latest N.C. polling numbers

It is a not-so-secret threshold that insiders look to as they gauge the political temperature in North Carolina. If Democrats can capture at least 35 percent of white vote – all other things being equal -- they’ve got a good chance at winning. The NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll of N.C. registered voters conducted this week by the polling unit of Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., offers some hints of where things stand in the national campaign, as well as the top two stateside races. The numbers, about unaffiliated voters, white voters, women (as well as whether people were reached by land-line phones or mobile phones) reveal why it is likely North Carolina will get a lot of attention (translate that into presidential campaign visits and a flood of spending on political advertising) between now and election day in November.