Hagan's approval ratings within North Carolina are also underwater. Poll: Hagan trails GOP opponents

Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan trails her potential Republican challengers as she works to retain her seat in November, according to a new poll.

The North Carolina Democrat trailed each of the Republicans vying to challenge her in the general election by 1 or 2 points, according to a poll out Tuesday from left-leaning Public Policy Polling.


Hagan is a top target of Republicans looking to take over control of the Senate in 2014. Tuesday’s poll is consistent with the past few months of polling, which have shown a sizable lead Hagan enjoyed in September evaporate as she runs near even with the Republicans in the field.

( PHOTOS: Senators up for election in 2014)

A frontrunner is also emerging in the GOP primary. State House Speaker Thom Tillis leads the pack with 19 percent; physician Greg Brannon and nurse practitioner Heather Grant were at 11 percent, Pastor Mark Harris was at 8 percent and radio personality Bill Flynn was at 7 percent.

In a hypothetical November matchup, Hagan trails Tillis 43 percent to 42 percent and Grant 42 percent to 41 percent. She trails the other candidates by 2 percentage points.

Hagan’s approval ratings in the state were also underwater. Just 39 percent of voters approve of the job Hagan is doing in the Senate, compared with 49 percent who disapprove. That’s down from a 43 percent to 49 percent approval she registered in December.

The senator’s approval closely parallels feelings in the state about President Barack Obama’s health care law. Thirty-eight percent of North Carolina voters approve of the Affordable Care Act, compared with 48 percent who disapprove.

Republicans have been using Obamacare to target senators like Hagan they see as vulnerable for reelection.

Public Policy Polling surveyed 1,384 North Carolina voters from Jan. 9 to 12 for the poll, which has an error margin of plus or minus 2.6 percentage points. The sample included 575 Republican primary voters and the results for the primary question have an error margin of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.