What We're Thinking (This Morning with Aaron Keck)

What We’re Thinking: A Blue Wave, If You Can Keep It

This week, Tom shares new numbers showing Democrats with a four-point edge in this year’s midterm – but that could become a 10-point edge, if anti-Trump undecideds end up voting against the president. That could potentially produce a ‘blue wave’ election even bigger than 2018 – even putting control of the North Carolina State House in play – but only if Democrats are able to cash in on their advantage, by keeping the focus on economic issues (and actually working to convince undecided voters that they’ll do a better job than Trump has). 97.9 The Hill WCHL and Chapelboro.com are your headquarters for local news and local voices in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. Every weekday morning, 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck chats with government officials, UNC scholars, business and nonprofit leaders, area musicians, and others in our community as they share their thoughts, their experience, and their expertise on the central issues of today. Click here to listen back to all of Aaron’s conversations [https://chapelboro.com/on-air-today] – and tune in to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” at 7:30 a.m. on 97.9 The Hill to hear those conversations live. Every other Monday, Aaron is joined at 8:30 a.m. by Tom Jensen, the director of Public Policy Polling [https://www.publicpolicypolling.com/], for a longstanding regular segment called “What We’re Thinking,” looking at recent survey numbers and discussing what they tell us about American public opinion – election-related and otherwise. You can also listen to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” on Spotify. Click here to follow Aaron and listen to all his segments [https://open.spotify.com/show/11jUjaXgON7EZspQ2VsTI1], from local news to fun features to hard-hitting interviews. The post What We’re Thinking: A Blue Wave, If You Can Keep It [https://chapelboro.com/the-aaron-keck-show/what-were-thinking/a-blue-wave-if-you-can-keep-it] appeared first on Chapelboro.com [https://chapelboro.com].

What We’re Thinking: Democratic Gerrymandering in Virginia?

This week, Tom and Aaron discuss an upcoming vote in Virginia over a new Congressional district map that’s gerrymandered to benefit Democrats. Tom says it’s likely to pass because it’s a strong year for Democrats – but it’s probably going to be closer than you might otherwise think, because Democrats in general are opposed to gerrymandering. (Will all these gerrymanders have a big impact on the outcome of the 2026 election? Probably not, Tom says, when all is said and done – thanks to the fact that Democrats and Republicans have both been equally engaged in sketchy line-drawing this year. Most Americans on all sides of the spectrum remain opposed to gerrymandering, and now we really know why.) 97.9 The Hill WCHL and Chapelboro.com are your headquarters for local news and local voices in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. Every weekday morning, 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck chats with government officials, UNC scholars, business and nonprofit leaders, area musicians, and others in our community as they share their thoughts, their experience, and their expertise on the central issues of today. Click here to listen back to all of Aaron’s conversations [https://chapelboro.com/on-air-today] – and tune in to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” at 7:30 a.m. on 97.9 The Hill to hear those conversations live. Every other Monday, Aaron is joined at 8:30 a.m. by Tom Jensen, the director of Public Policy Polling [https://www.publicpolicypolling.com/], for a longstanding regular segment called “What We’re Thinking,” looking at recent survey numbers and discussing what they tell us about American public opinion – election-related and otherwise. You can also listen to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” on Spotify. Click here to follow Aaron and listen to all his segments [https://open.spotify.com/show/11jUjaXgON7EZspQ2VsTI1], from local news to fun features to hard-hitting interviews. The post What We’re Thinking: Democratic Gerrymandering in Virginia? [https://chapelboro.com/the-aaron-keck-show/what-were-thinking/democratic-gerrymandering-in-virginia] appeared first on Chapelboro.com [https://chapelboro.com].

What We’re Thinking: Iran, Gas Prices, Trump, and the Midterms

This week, Tom dissects new polls showing Donald Trump starting to lose support with some of his base voters, mostly due to rising gas prices. Support for the war in Iran is also very low, with Democrats united in opposition and Republicans mostly in favor but much more divided. Tom says Trump’s approval rating might tick back up if gas prices drop, but the picture appears very bright regardless for Democrats in the upcoming midterm; we’ll get a preview this week with a closely-watched race in Wisconsin. 97.9 The Hill WCHL and Chapelboro.com are your headquarters for local news and local voices in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. Every weekday morning, 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck chats with government officials, UNC scholars, business and nonprofit leaders, area musicians, and others in our community as they share their thoughts, their experience, and their expertise on the central issues of today. Click here to listen back to all of Aaron’s conversations [https://chapelboro.com/on-air-today] – and tune in to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” at 7:30 a.m. on 97.9 The Hill to hear those conversations live. Every other Monday, Aaron is joined at 8:30 a.m. by Tom Jensen, the director of Public Policy Polling [https://www.publicpolicypolling.com/], for a longstanding regular segment called “What We’re Thinking,” looking at recent survey numbers and discussing what they tell us about American public opinion – election-related and otherwise. You can also listen to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” on Spotify. Click here to follow Aaron and listen to all his segments [https://open.spotify.com/show/11jUjaXgON7EZspQ2VsTI1], from local news to fun features to hard-hitting interviews. The post What We’re Thinking: Iran, Gas Prices, Trump, and the Midterms [https://chapelboro.com/the-aaron-keck-show/what-were-thinking/iran-gas-prices-trump-and-the-midterms] appeared first on Chapelboro.com [https://chapelboro.com].

What We’re Thinking: Analyzing the 2026 Primary

This week, Tom and Aaron look back on the results of last week’s midterm primary in North Carolina and Texas – good news all around for Democrats, who got significantly more votes than Republicans in both states. That’s not necessarily a bellwether for the general election, but Tom says in this case it might be: both parties had high-profile, competitive races, so in this case a turnout edge for one party does suggest an enthusiasm advantage (not to mention greater overall voter support) heading into November. Also, Tom goes deeper into the results of the NC-4 primary, where Valerie Foushee narrowly beat Nida Allam – reiterating his earlier argument [https://chapelboro.com/the-aaron-keck-show/what-were-thinking/early-voting-and-allam-foushee] that Allam might have been able to win if she’d done more to get out the college student vote. (And Aaron asks about whom the Orange County Democrats might want to lift up to a position of high prominence – you know, just in case such a position should happen to open up. [https://chapelboro.com/news/state-government/graig-meyer-to-resign-from-state-senate-transition-to-north-carolina-justice-center]) 97.9 The Hill WCHL and Chapelboro.com are your headquarters for local news and local voices in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. Every weekday morning, 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck chats with government officials, UNC scholars, business and nonprofit leaders, area musicians, and others in our community as they share their thoughts, their experience, and their expertise on the central issues of today. Click here to listen back to all of Aaron’s conversations [https://chapelboro.com/on-air-today] – and tune in to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” at 7:30 a.m. on 97.9 The Hill to hear those conversations live. Every other Monday, Aaron is joined at 8:30 a.m. by Tom Jensen, the director of Public Policy Polling [https://www.publicpolicypolling.com/], for a longstanding regular segment called “What We’re Thinking,” looking at recent survey numbers and discussing what they tell us about American public opinion – election-related and otherwise. You can also listen to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” on Spotify. Click here to follow Aaron and listen to all his segments [https://open.spotify.com/show/11jUjaXgON7EZspQ2VsTI1], from local news to fun features to hard-hitting interviews. The post What We’re Thinking: Analyzing the 2026 Primary [https://chapelboro.com/the-aaron-keck-show/what-were-thinking/analyzing-the-2026-primary] appeared first on Chapelboro.com [https://chapelboro.com].

What We’re Thinking: Early Voting and Allam-Foushee

This week, Tom attempts to gauge the state of the Allam-Foushee Congressional primary by looking at early voting numbers. Incumbent Valerie Foushee has a large edge with seniors, while challenger Nida Allam is heavily favored by voters under 45 – and so far, seniors have accounted for most of the early votes cast, leading Tom to conclude that Foushee currently has a sizable edge. But younger voters tend to head to the polls later, so Allam is likely to close that gap and could still overtake Foushee in the end – assuming she’s able to do enough successful outreach with her base, particularly on campus. (Also, Tom weighs in on Gallup’s recent decision to stop conducting presidential approval polls.) 97.9 The Hill WCHL and Chapelboro.com are your headquarters for local news and local voices in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. Every weekday morning, 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck chats with government officials, UNC scholars, business and nonprofit leaders, area musicians, and others in our community as they share their thoughts, their experience, and their expertise on the central issues of today. Click here to listen back to all of Aaron’s conversations [https://chapelboro.com/on-air-today] – and tune in to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” at 7:30 a.m. on 97.9 The Hill to hear those conversations live. Every other Monday, Aaron is joined at 8:30 a.m. by Tom Jensen, the director of Public Policy Polling [https://www.publicpolicypolling.com/], for a longstanding regular segment called “What We’re Thinking,” looking at recent survey numbers and discussing what they tell us about American public opinion – election-related and otherwise. You can also listen to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” on Spotify. Click here to follow Aaron and listen to all his segments [https://open.spotify.com/show/11jUjaXgON7EZspQ2VsTI1], from local news to fun features to hard-hitting interviews. The post What We’re Thinking: Early Voting and Allam-Foushee [https://chapelboro.com/the-aaron-keck-show/what-were-thinking/early-voting-and-allam-foushee] appeared first on Chapelboro.com [https://chapelboro.com].