This election has been reinforced as a referendum of the said law considering North Carolina's conservative shift under the governance of the Republican McCrory and the legislature. While several surveys show that the race between the re-electionist McCrory and Democratic Attorney General Roy Cooper is in a statistical tie, this year's gubernatorial contest is one of the nation's most competitive race in the political history.
McCrory's competitor, Roy Cooper, proposes to revoke the House Bill 2 - a law that directs the member of the LGBT community to use bathrooms in educational institutions and government buildings according to the sex indicated in their birth certificates.
Cooper, North Carolina's Atorney General since 2001, also vowed to work on the restoration of the state's progressive image once elected and has launched an advertisement attacking the LGBT law, saying that it has "trashed our brand" and cost thousands of jobs.
In a speech before the dozens of Democratic volunteers for him in Greensboro, Cooper said, "North Carolina is better than this. We always have been. We will be again."
After the devastating flooding caused by Hurricane Matthew, McCrory took a shot on redeeming himself this month as he appeared on an almost everyday basis on the news showing that he is the one leading for the response and recovery efforts. Among McCrory's most recent advertisements is the one which shows footage from the storm and the riots that was triggered by the fatal shooting by a Charlotte police to a black man.
In an interview with The Associated Press, McCrory said: "The last four years I've focused on my job as governor. The campaign has always been secondary. Any event that happens in a state ... you just do your job. But I assume if we didn't do it right, there would be political ramifications."
The actions of McCrory has earned him support not only from the solid Republicans, but from several Democrats, as well. The 72-year-old David Parker from Rocky Mount told that he voted for McCrory because he has "stood out during Hurricane Matthew and been very responsive to the people in eastern North Carolina that have been in some problems".
Just like the other candidates from the Democratic Party, Cooper has also been benefited in the massive get-out-the-vote operation by the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton as early in-person voting began Oct. 20. According to the data analyzed by the Center for Public Integrity, with Cooper's campaigns airing almost twice as many ads on broadcast television compared to McCrory, this election's campaign has been costly and nasty.
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