From the Civitas Institute:

...because "Statistical Tie" isn't a good name for a hot sauce, is it?

The race for North Carolina’s 11th district Congressional seat is a dead heat (45 percent-44 percent) between Democratic incumbent Heath Shuler and Republican candidate Jeff Miller as the unaffiliated vote looks to become the deciding factor according to a new SurveyUSA poll released today by the Civitas Institute.

According to the poll of 400 registered voters in that district, when asked who they would vote for if the election for United States House of Representatives were today, 45 percent of voters said they would vote for Shuler.  Forty-four percent said they would vote for Miller, and 11 percent said they were undecided.

“Despite Shuler voting against many of the unpopular bills that have been passed by Congress, the unpopularity of President Obama and the Democratic Congress is making this a competitive race,” said Civitas Institute Senior Legislative Analyst Chris Hayes.

Shuler, who is currently serving his second Congressional term, has a -3 favorable rating (29 percent favorable-32 percent unfavorable) even though he holds a significant name advantage over his opponent.  Thirty-six percent of voters said they are neutral on his candidacy.

Conversely, Miller, despite only 32 percent of voters having an opinion of him, has a net +6 favorable rating as 19 percent of voters view him favorably while 13 percent view him unfavorably.  Thirty-six percent said their opinion is neutral.

Just like everything else with the late John W. Pope’s name on it, it’s a good idea to consider the source and judge for yourself whether these numbers actually amount to anything…