Former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker said Wednesday that he would not challenge Republican Sen. Richard Burr next year.

Wicker, a Raleigh lawyer and a Democrat, said he seriously considered a Senate bid this time and received strong encouragement to take the plunge, Rob Christensen reports.

"The demands of raising $15 million to $20 million is just an enormous amount of money," Wicker said.

He also cited the demands of a relatively young family and a full-time law practice.

"Richard Burr is going to be a tough opponent," Wicker said. "But it is a winnable race for a Democrat. About this time in the 2008 election cycle the Democrats were scrambling for a candidate, when Kay Hagan said yes then said no and then came back and said yes. A year is an eternity in politics. It may not look like a great year for Democrats. But it can change quickly, particularly if the economy improves."

Wicker is a former state House majority leader and was a candidate for governor in 2000.

There are two Democrats who have announced their candidacy: Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Chapel Hill lawyer Kenneth Lewis. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has been trying to convince former state Sen. Cal Cunningham, an Iraq veteran who previously decided not to run, to enter the race.

U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge previously decided not to run.

GRADE STIMULUS: A Goldsboro middle school was lambasted this week for its plan to award extra test points — enough to raise a letter grade — in exchange for cash contributions for the school. The lesson for students: Hard work, perseverance and positive attitude will be rewarded. And if that doesn't work, a nice crisp $20 couldn't hurt.

CHOPPED LIVER; The race for the Democratic nomination to challenge U.S. Sen. Richard Burr got lots of attention this week. Lexington lawyer Cal Cunningham is out. U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge is going for a new fence-sitting record. Two others are thinking about it. All the buzz about candidates who aren't running can't be flattering to the only two people who are: lawyer Kenneth Lewis and Secretary of State Elaine Marshall.

SHE'S BACK: Gov. Bev Perdue got a big bump in her job approval, apparently because of her refusal to release violent inmates despite a court ruling. Perdue has been hitting the public events pretty hard and making big announcements. A few more ribbon cuttings and another stand at a jail-house door and Perdue might just be liked again.

IN OTHER NEWS: Sen. Martin Nesbitt appears to have a lock on the job of Senate majority leader...The state's pension fund is beginning to recover from a financial slump...Barack Obama's campaign was the source of the tip that John Edwards got $400 haircuts.

U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge has still has not issued a statement on whether he will challenge Republican Sen. Richard Burr next year.

But Dome would be shocked if he announces for the Senate. The word in Democratic circles is that Etheridge has decided to seek re-election to his House seat.

Etheridge has been heavily courted by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee since last spring as the strongest potential challenger to Burr. But Etheridge has always been politically cautious and has passed on Senate races in the past. And he recently gained a coveted seat on the House Ways and Means Committee.

The Lillington Democrat has already told the senatorial committee his decision, but they asked him to put off an announcement for a day or two.

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North Carolinians appear to be a bit more satisfied with U.S. Sen. Richard Burr.

The latest survey by Public Policy Polling shows that the numbers have improved slightly for Burr, a Winston-Salem Republican who is up for re-election next year.

PPP surveyed 711 North Carolina voters from Nov. 9-11. They found that 40 percent of North Carolinians approve of the job Burr is doing, while 31 percent disapprove. That's better than the 38 percent rating Burr got in last month's poll by PPP, and 36 percent in September.

Burr leads U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge (45-35), Secretary of State Elaine Marshall (45-34), former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker (45-33), Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy (44-32), and Chapel Hill attorney Ken Lewis (45-32).

The survey's margin of error was plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.

Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy says he hopes to decide by the end of the month whether to enter the U.S. Senate race.

"I'm still talking to people," Foy said. "It's been an education for me to find out what people are thinking about."

He said the main concern is that people are worried about the economy.

"A lot of people are concerned about what kind of representation we have," Foy said. "We are an emerging dominate state and have weak federal representation."

The most daunting aspect of a Senate race, Foy said, was the millions of dollars that would have to be raised.

So far two Democrats have entered the race to challenge Republican Richard Burr: Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis.

Cal Cunningham's poll numbers didn't move much during the period where he was exploring a bid for U.S. Senate.

Cunningham, a Lexington lawyer, was the non-candidate candidate, who appeared at events and quietly looked at a run against Republican Sen. Richard Burr, giving Dome plenty of chances to use duck similes. Now, Dome must put away the quacks because Cunningham is out.

It's likely that his decision had something to do with whatever it is U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge will decide about the race.

It's also helpful to note that Cunningham had the same level of support against Burr in October than he did in February. Public Policy Polling noted in February that Burr was leading Cunningham 46 to 27. In October, the pollster pulled the same percentages. Pollster.com, which averages and analyzes polling data, showed that Cunningham's support over time was only slightly better than a flat line.

And for the record, Pollster.com shows declared candidate Kenneth Lewis with an average of 29.1 percent to Burr's 44.5. It's notable that Lewis and Cunningham, two unknowns, were getting similar numbers suggesting that polling results in their cases are more about Burr's level of support.

Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, also a declared candidate, has 31.2 percent to Burr's 43.9 percent, according to Pollster.com's analysis. And Etheridge has 34.7 percent to 43.3 percent for Burr.

Cal Cunningham, a Lexington Democrat who had been exploring a U.S. Senate bid for months, said late Monday that he will not run.

The decision is a possible indicator the U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge will seek the Democratic nomination to challenge Sen. Richard Burr in 2010. Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis have already announced they are in the primary.

In a post sent to a Facebook group organized to help build support for a potential campaign, a message from Cunningham, a lawyer and former member of the N.C. Senate, said it would be the wrong race at the wrong time for his family.

Dear Friends,

After giving a serious and thorough look at a race for the U.S. Senate, I have decided not to seek office at this time.

This has been a very difficult decision, but I’m sure there will be another day and there are many other ways to serve. I am deeply committed to public service and have a passion for working on the serious issues facing our State and country.

A campaign for the Senate is about winning and working to be a part of the answer. As a candidate, I have to look supporters in the eye and show them how we win — and what we do when we get there.

After a very careful look, I’ve concluded that this is the wrong race at the wrong time for me and my family.

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Sen. Richard Burr is the target of a new Internet ad campaign that seeks to tie his political contributions from the defense industry and the Chamber of Commerce to his vote on a bill involving how overseas American contractors handle allegations of rape.

"Did Sen. Burr Put Campaign Cash Above Victims of Gang Rape?" says the online ad that is scheduled to begin running today by Change Congress, a Washington-based group that pushes campaign finance reform.

The group is currently running ads on other issues targeting Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, and Rep. Mike Ross of Arkansas, all Democrats.

"We've had a series of campaigns that have tried to point out cases where members have voted consistent with contributors but inconsistent with their constitutuents," Larry Sessig, the co-founder of Change Congress said in an interview.

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U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, a Republican, is ahead of Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, one of his potential Democratic opponents, by ten points, according to a poll by the conservative Civitas Institute.

Among those surveyed, 43.7 percent backed Burr, while 33 percent picked Marshall.

The poll, released Friday, surveyed 600 voters by live interviews on October 20 and 21 and has a margin of error of 4 percent.

Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis have declared their candidacy for the Democratic nomination to challenge Burr next year. Former state Sen. Cal Cunningham is considering a run.

A new poll has found that 42 percent of North Carolinians say someone else should have U.S. Sen. Richard Burr's seat.

The Elon University Poll found that 19 percent of state residents believe Burr deserves another term in office, according to the survey of 703 state residents that was conducted Oct. 26-29.

The poll also found 29 percent of respondents said they "don't know" if Burr, a Winston-Salem Republican, deserves re-election.

Burr’s approval rating stands at 37 percent, the poll found, while 22 percent of respondents disapprove of the way he is handling his job. Forty-one percent don’t know how they feel on his job performance.

Two Democrats have formally entered the race. Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and lawyer Kenneth Lewis have filed candidate paperwork.

The poll also asked respondents for their opinions on other political figures.

U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan: 35 percent approve, 35 percent disapprove, 29 percent don’t know.

Gov. Beverly Perdue: 36 percent approve, 47 percent disapprove, 18 percent don’t know.

The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.

Update: The National Republican Senatorial Committee weighed in on the poll. Expect to see this one a lot from Colin Reed, a spokesman for the committee:

In the words of Erskine Bowles just last week, 'nobody works harder or smarter for North Carolina than Richard Burr does.' It speaks to Senator Burr’s strength at home that as national Democrats struggle to recruit a strong challenger, his former opponent continues to offer nothing but praise for his hard work on behalf of North Carolina in the U.S. Senate.

And the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee issued it's own statement from spokesman Eric Schultz.

Whether it was its when he suggested a run on the banks, his hypocrisy over stimulus funding, or his inexplicable vote against justice for victims of sexual assault, it should come as no surprise that Richard Burr is the most vulnerable Republican in the United States Senate.