A Pivotal Senate Race in North Carolina

<p>In the struggle to control the U.S. Senate, one race in North Carolina — where the Republican incumbent, Thom Tillis, is trying to hold off his Democratic challenger, Cal Cunningham — could be crucial.</p><p>North Carolina is a classic purple state with a split political mind: progressive in some quarters, while firmly steeped in Southern conservative tradition in others.</p><p>Two bombshells have recently upended the race: Mr. Tillis fell ill with the coronavirus after attending an event for Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination without a mask. And Mr. Cunningham’s image was sullied by the emergence of text messages showing that he had engaged in an extramarital affair.</p><p>Jonathan Martin, a national political correspondent for The Times, talks us through the race and examines the factors that could determine who prevails.</p><p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/jonathan-martin" target="_blank">Jonathan Martin</a>, a national political correspondent for The New York Times.</p><p>For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily" target="_blank">nytimes.com/thedaily </a></p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li>North Carolina<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/22/us/politics/north-carolina-trump-supreme-court-senate.html" target="_blank"> is a linchpin</a> in the 2020 election — the presidency and the Senate could hinge on results in the state.</li><li>Here’s how the critical senate race was<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/03/us/politics/coronavirus-thom-tillis-cal-cunningham-north-carolina.html" target="_blank"> engulfed in chaos</a> in a single night.</li></ul>