In North Carolina, voters are leaning more in John McCain’s direction than they have at any point since March.

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey finds McCain ahead 46% to 42% in the Tar Heel State. That’s little changed from last month. But, when “leaners” are included, McCain has opened a six-point lead, 50% to 44%. That’s twice the three-point advantage from a month ago and McCain’s biggest edge since shortly after the Jeremiah Wright story became news in mid-March.

Recent polling in Colorado and Minnesota shows a similar, modest, improvement for McCain. Sign up for the Rasmussen Reports daily e-mail update (it’s free) and we’ll keep you up-to-date with the latest information and poll results.

In North Carolina, McCain is supported by 87% of Republicans while Obama is backed by 74% of Democrats. McCain has a slight lead among unaffiliated voters, a reversal from last month.

McCain leads by a more than two-to-one margin among white voters while Obama is supported by 93% of African-Americans. McCain leads by twenty percentage points among men, but trails Obama by five among women (Full demographic crosstabs are available to Premium Members).

McCain is viewed favorably by 59%, up two points from last month and four points from two months ago.

Obama is viewed favorably by 51%, down just a point over the past month.

North Carolina has voted for Republican candidates in nine out of the last ten Presidential elections. In 2004, George W. Bush won the state by a 56% to 44% margin.

Rasmussen Markets data gives McCain a % chance of winning North Carolina’s Electoral College votes this fall. These results are updated on a 24/7 basis by market participants. It costs nothing to join, so add your voice to the collective wisdom. The Tar Heel state is listed as “Leans Republican in the Rasmussen Reports Balance of Power Calculator NOTE: Factors other than the latest Rasmussen Reports poll impact the Balance of Power ratings. The current status is indicated on the table in the upper right hand corner of this article.

Nationally, the race between Obama and McCain is very close in the Rasmussen Daily Presidential Tracking Poll.

In North Carolina, 57% believe the U.S. and its allies are winning the War on Terror. That’s a bit more optimistic than the national average, but voters throughout the nation are more optimistic than they have been in the past four years.

Like voters nationwide, North Carolina voters say it’s more important to find new sources of energy than it is to reduce the energy we consume. Sixty-seven percent (67%) say finding new energy should be the top priority while 25% prefer reducing our energy consumption. Nationally, voters believe McCain is more interested in finding new energy sources while Obama wants to reduce consumption. A related survey found that most voters believe members of Congress should return to Washington immediately to vote on allowing offshore oil drilling.

In another finding that mirrors the national mood, 55% of North Carolina voters say that most reporters are trying to help Obama win in November. Just 8% think they are trying to help McCain while 25% say they are trying to offer unbiased coverage.

Frustration with the media has convinced 47% of voters nationally that the government should mandate balanced political coverage on radio and television. Thirty-one percent (31%) believe these requirements should be mandated for bloggers and web sites as well. Half the nation’s voters believe that most reporters are trying to help Obama win this fall while hardly any believe reporters are trying to help McCain.

Thirty-eight percent (38%) of North Carolina voters think President Bush is doing a good or excellent job. Nearly half (48%) say he is doing a poor job.

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