The day after his disastrous debate performance, President Joe Biden came to North Carolina seeking salvation.

The Democratic president’s aim was not only to show vigor and clarity at a rally. It was also about going forward with what had seemed like a real chance that he could turn his narrow 2020 loss in North Carolina into a narrow victory.

Assuming Biden stays in the race, is there any chance that North Carolina could still be in play? I sent that question to several North Carolina political scientists and observers of state politics. The answers that came back were a mix.

“In a word, no,” said Steven Greene, an N.C. State University political science professor. “You cannot have the largest event of the campaign dramatically reinforce the most negative narrative about a candidate for all to see and not expect major damage to the campaign. North Carolina was already seemingly a reach for Biden, if he remains in the campaign, it strikes me as highly unlikely he could win our state.”

David McLennan, a Meredith College political science professor and director of the Meredith Poll, said the numbers for Biden are likely to start going the wrong way.

He said, “Polling in June before the debate had Biden down to Trump by about four points, a gap that has been consistent over the last few months. I would expect that post-debate polls in North Carolina show Biden losing four to six more points against Trump.”

Michael Bitzer, a Catawba College political science professor who studies state politics, said Biden’s hopes for taking the state were based on gaining support from Republicans turned off by Trump.

“What Biden ultimately needed to do was reassure these voters, and if they were engaged and paid attention over the past week, I can’t help but think they didn’t get that, but rather became even more worried,” Bitzer said.

Chris Cooper, a Western Carolina University political science professor, said Biden might yet have a chance. He noted that the debate mess happened early, leaving the president time to recover. He added that concern about Biden’s age was already baked into voters’ views and an erratic Trump could still blow up his own campaign.

“Can Joe Biden still win North Carolina? Yes. Will he win North Carolina? I don’t know,” Cooper said. “His debate performance certainly narrowed his path, but he’s not out yet.”

Asher Hildebrand, a former Democratic congressional staffer and now an associate professor at Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy, also sees hope for Biden.

“The election is still four months away, North Carolina is still a purple state, and Donald Trump is still Donald Trump,” he said. “As long as Biden continues to invest time and resources in the state, I think it’s premature to declare victory for Trump.”

Susan Roberts, a political scientist at Davidson College, said Biden stumbled, but might be saved by an intense focus on abortion rights in North Carolina’s gubernatorial race between Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson and Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein. “If women in North Carolina are driven to the polls by access to abortion, it stands to reason that they are going to be supporting Joe Biden more,” she said.

Roberts said the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that expanded presidential immunity might give voters more reason to vote against Trump’s return to the presidency. But overall, Biden is a longer shot to win that he was before the debate, she said.

“I don’t know that if I was a Democratic consultant, that I would spend a tremendous amount of money in North Carolina,” she said.

The last word belongs to Rob Christensen, a former longtime News & Observer columnist and the author of books on the state’s political history.

“It would have been difficult, but not impossible, for Biden to carry North Carolina before the debate. Biden was badly damaged by his debate performance,” he said. “Politics is full of surprises, but it is hard to see him winning North Carolina now.”

Associate opinion editor Ned Barnett can be reached at 919-404-7583, or nbarnett@ newsobserver.com