President Obama was dependent on the black vote in order win the 2008 election. (Google/Creative Commons)

North Carolina has the largest percentage of black voters of any of the swing states. In the 2008 election, a strong black turnout that voted almost exclusively for Obama helped to turn North Carolina blue for the first time in decades, contributing to his ultimate victory.

But during this election, the black community is not as supportive as they were before. Unemployment is up, but concerns go beyond the economy. Some socially conservative black ministers in North Carolina, where voters passed a referendum against gay marriages and civil unions in May, remain troubled that Obama endorsed same-sex marriage this year.

“Even if I’m not really excited, I think it’s important to vote for Obama at the end of the day because of that other guy,” Dexter Hady, a black landscaper in North Carolina, said of Romney. “I listen to him, so I know how out of touch he is.”

In recent national polls, Obama overwhelmingly leads Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential candidate, among blacks. A New York Times/CBS News Poll conducted last month showed that 94 percent of likely black voters supported Mr. Obama, compared with 6 percent who said they would vote for Mr. Romney.

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Reach Reporter Tricia Tongco here and follow her on Twitter.