Party leaders last year picked North Carolina's largest city for their convention site in hopes of expanding their foothold in the New South. But the selection has been a source of consternation to some key constituencies.

 

Gay rights advocates and union groups are expected to protest as the convention gets underway. That's because North Carolina voters easily passed a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in May and many view the state as hostile to organized labor.

 

Obama and Republican Mitt Romney are polling neck and neck in the state after the president scored an upset victory in 2008.