{"id":2367551,"date":"2024-11-12T05:38:02","date_gmt":"2024-11-12T10:38:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/how-bidens-proposed-menthol-ban-helped-trump-in-north-carolina-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-11-12T05:41:03","modified_gmt":"2024-11-12T10:41:03","slug":"how-bidens-proposed-menthol-ban-helped-trump-in-north-carolina-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/how-bidens-proposed-menthol-ban-helped-trump-in-north-carolina-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"How Biden&#8217;s proposed menthol ban helped Trump in North Carolina &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhow-bidens-proposed-menthol-ban-helped-trump-in-north-carolina-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2367551&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The proposed ban on menthol\u2062 cigarettes \u200bby\u2062 the Biden administration appears to have had a significant impact on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pinkerton-joe-biden-and-john-kerrys-green-great-reset-punishes-america-rewards-china\/\" title=\"Pinkerton: Joe Biden and John Kerry\u2019s Green Great Reset Punishes America, Rewards China\">recent election results<\/a> in \u2063North Carolina. This ban \u2063may have contributed \u2062to President-elect Donald Trump\u2019s victory over Vice \u200dPresident Kamala Harris,\u200b as Trump improved his margins in tobacco-growing counties compared \u2063to \u2062previous elections.\u2063 North Carolina, known for its tobacco production, historically leans Republican, and Trump&#8217;s campaign capitalized \u2063on the menthol ban to sway voters, particularly among black\u2064 males and farmers.<\/p>\n<p>Polls \u200bsuggested that black voter support for \u2062Harris \u2064could diminish if she backed the menthol ban. A survey indicated a 13% decline in support among this demographic \u200din North Carolina, which some \u200dbelieve ultimately affected electoral\u200c outcomes. \u2064Republican\u200c strategists labeled the issue a &#8220;sleeper,&#8221; asserting that it resonated with voters in a tight race, thereby influencing Trump&#8217;s success in the state.<\/p>\n<p>The\u200d FDA had proposed the menthol \u2062cigarette ban in early 2021, but the Biden administration\u200b has delayed \u2063decision-making in response to community pushback. Critics of the ban argue that it\u200d could negatively impact local economies, especially as cigarettes account for a significant \u200bportion\u200b of sales in convenience stores. the \u200bmenthol \u200dban became a focal\u2062 point in North Carolina&#8217;s \u2062electoral dynamics, illustrating \u200cthe complexities of tobacco-related policies in politics.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Biden&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/poll-majority-of-pennsylvanians-oppose-bidens-menthol-cigarette-ban\/\" title=\"POLL: Majority of Pennsylvanians Oppose Biden\u2019s Menthol Cigarette Ban\">proposed menthol ban<\/a> may have been &lsquo;sleeper issue&rsquo; in North Carolina<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1879151\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The Biden administration&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3137662\/gop-white-house-menthol-ban-harris-swing-state-support\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">proposed ban on menthol cigarettes<\/a>&nbsp;may have boosted President-elect Donald Trump&rsquo;s standing in tobacco-growing counties in North Carolina, ultimately securing a victory in the key swing state and boosting him to a resounding Electoral College win.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris by 3.4 points&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/live-blog-posts\/trump-wins-swing-state-north-carolina-harris-wins-oregon\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">in North Carolina,<\/a>&nbsp;an improvement from his performance in 2020 when he beat President Joe Biden by just 1.3 points. Election results also show Trump made some of his biggest gains in Pitt, Lenoir, Sampson, Duplin, Columbus, and Robeson counties, which are all known for their&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/tobacco\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">tobacco products<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>While North Carolina is considered a battleground state, the state has historically benefitted Republican candidates, with Trump sweeping the state in 2020 as well. And as Trump won the state for a third time, and eventually swept the other six swing states in addition to North Carolina, in 2024, some pro-tobacco lobbyists think the issue gave him a boost in the Tarheel state.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When looking at numbers in eastern North Carolina, we definitely saw a shift to Trump that was even better&rdquo; than his 2016 and 2020 performances, Ray Starling, general counsel of the North Carolina Chamber, told the<em> Washington Examiner.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Polls ahead of the election indicated black voters may be less likely to support Harris&rsquo;s candidacy if she advanced any sort of restrictions on menthol cigarettes.&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3137662\/gop-white-house-menthol-ban-harris-swing-state-support\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">One such survey&nbsp;<\/a>conducted in mid-August by the Tyson Group showed a 13% drop in support for Harris among black voters in North Carolina if she supported the menthol ban.<\/p>\n<p>Still, it&rsquo;s not&nbsp;clear whether the issue played a significant role in voters&rsquo; decisions as polling has not been updated since the election last week. However, Starling and other campaign officials in the state say they believe it had a major influence on voters.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Biden-Harris anti-tobacco policies were a sleeper issue that resonated with both black males and farmers,&rdquo; one GOP campaign strategist told the&nbsp;<em>Washington Examiner.&nbsp;<\/em>&ldquo;Our polling shows this issue made a difference on the margins and in a close state like North Carolina, that can make a difference. Attacking tobacco was an unforced error by the Biden Administration and they paid a price on Election Day.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Republicans had sought to tie Harris to the Biden administration&rsquo;s support for a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-gops-newest-midterm-issue-menthols\/\" title=\"The GOP\u2019s Newest Midterm Issue: Menthols?\">proposed menthol cigarette ban<\/a> in an effort to win over black voters since shortly after she ascended to the top of the Democratic ticket.&nbsp;While campaigning, Harris did not explicitly state her stance on a proposed menthol ban,&nbsp;which played into the hands of Republicans who used the issue to attract voters in North Carolina, the country&rsquo;s No. 1 tobacco-producing state.<\/p>\n<p>The Food and Drug Administration first floated a proposal to implement a ban on menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars in spring 2021. However, the Biden administration has repeatedly delayed greenlighting the proposal due to pushback from certain voter groups &mdash; making it unclear when a final decision will be made.<\/p>\n<p>Opponents of the ban have argued such restrictions would negatively affect the economy at a time when businesses are already dealing with rising costs and inflation. Cigarettes account for nearly 30% of all sales in convenience stores and over 10% of those stores&rsquo; gross margins, according to data from the National Association of Convenience Stores. Those numbers have contributed over $54 billion to the industry.<\/p>\n<p>Strategists say the issue may have resonated with voters because it was &ldquo;new information&rdquo; that went beyond the oft-discussed issues of abortion, immigration, and the economy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Those strategists then pointed to the candidacy of Rep. Don Davis (D-NC), one of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents on election night. However, Davis survived his reelection fight &mdash; and notably, he was known for pushing back on the Biden administration&rsquo;s proposed menthol ban.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Starling even went so far as to say that although the issue may have just been a motivating factor in North Carolina, lawmakers could see that interest expand to other states with <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">similarly big tobacco-growing counties<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think it resonated more here immediately,&rdquo; Starling said. &ldquo;Now over time, I think it ought to resonate everywhere for the same reasons we talked about.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;North Carolina was the right place for this message,&rdquo; he added, &ldquo;because we feel it first.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1879151\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1879151\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Biden&#8217;s menthol ban may have helped Trump in North Carolina<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2640,"featured_media":2367552,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Donald-Trump-election-24ze1r1.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[3620,44830,3634],"class_list":["post-2367551","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-biden","tag-menthol-ban","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Donald-Trump-election-24ze1r1.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2367551","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2640"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2367551"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2367551\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2367555,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2367551\/revisions\/2367555"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2367552"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2367551"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2367551"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2367551"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}