海角大神

Petitions by gay groups this week aimed at plucking the upcoming Democratic National Convention out of Charlotte, N.C., and plopping it elsewhere after the state convincingly passed a gay marriage ban are unlikely to succeed.

But stirring discontent with North Carolina, punctuated by Obama鈥檚 reversal on gay marriage and declaration of support a day after the state referendum, isn鈥檛 the only red flag that鈥檚 whipping around a year after Democrats picked Charlotte as their 2012 convention site, partly as a symbol of Obama鈥檚 outreach to Dixie and to highlight the economic and demographic transformation of North Carolina from Mayberry quaintness to harbinger of a 21st century knowledge economy.

Since Obama became the first Democratic presidential nominee to prevail there since Jimmy Carter in 1976, the state has come to symbolize many of the Democrats鈥� challenges as they seek Obama鈥檚 reelection: stubborn economic hardship (9.7 percent unemployment), culture war battles on the ascendant, and a scandal-riven state party that has struggled to reassemble and excite the mosaic of voter groups that backed Obama in 2008.

In short, 鈥淭he Old North State has become a battleground,鈥� writes Duke University public policy professor Jacob Vigdor, in a

Gay marriage issue: Who does it hurt most, Obama or Romney?

That battle heated up this week after the gay marriage ban was approved by a 61 to 39 margin along neat geographical lines, making North Carolina the 26th state with such an amendment.

Solidly in favor were the state鈥檚 vast rural tracts, where the state鈥檚 political power still resides. Solidly opposed were the state鈥檚 growing urban areas, like Raleigh and Chapel Hill, which have come to define the transformation of North Carolina from an agrarian, tobacco-growing backwater to a polyglot society of immigrants and newcomers, where about half the populace hails from somewhere else, often from another country.

In 2008, Obama managed to exploit anger at George W. Bush while rallying young people, many of them first-time voters, to the polls. But this time those voters may be harder to reach.

Young people, especially, are bearing the brunt of economic hard times. And blacks in North Carolina, who came out in force for Obama in 2008, overwhelmingly supported the gay marriage ban, highlighting the hazards of the President鈥檚 political high-wire act on gay marriage.

That stance may become even more complicated as many Democrats are now pushing for gay marriage to become part of the Democratic platform to be approved in Charlotte, which could turn out to be divisive and distracting, especially given that the majority of voters in North Carolina remain, at least on the books, Democrats.

The Charlotte pick for the convention has also angered many union workers, who complain that there are no unionized hotels in North Carolina鈥檚 banking capital. Some of them plan to join gay marriage advocates in protest at the convention.

The President鈥檚 North Carolina woes don鈥檛 end there.

The state has also become a nexus of Obama backlash. Since 2008, Republicans took over both chambers of the state legislature for the first time since Reconstruction, and Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue, who had hoped that Obama鈥檚 presence in the state could elevate her own campaign, has decided not to run for reelection amid widespread speculation that she鈥檇 have little chance of winning.

To make matters worse, her decision not to seek reelection came after she admitted to being aware of an attempted cover-up of sexual harassment allegations involving the state Democratic party executive director. The scandal has demoralized state Democrats and left the party in bitter disarray.

In the end, North Carolina may be more problematic for the presumptive Republican nominee, Mitt Romney, than Obama, whom political experts say can more easily cobble together an electoral college victory without the state鈥檚 15 presidential electors.

Even on that front, North Carolina symbolizes national voter excitement ahead of the election. More than 40,000 more people voted in this year鈥檚 primaries than in 2008, even though the national contest had largely been settled.

But while the North Carolina convention has suddenly come to represent Democrats鈥� complicated path to victory in November, others believe the big party in Charlotte in August will become a clarion call for Obama鈥檚 campaign.

鈥淚 think the greatest strength that the party has is President Obama, and he鈥檚 the thing that people will rally around,鈥� Gary Pearce, a former Democratic consultant in the state,

Gay marriage issue: Who does it hurt most, Obama or Romney?