If you've been living in New York for more than just a few years, arguably you know former mayor Mike Bloomberg better than most other voters around the country. But as he now looks for support in states that cast a vote Tuesday for the Democratic nomination, we want to know how people outside the city are feeling about him.

WNYC's Richard Hake spoke with reporters from three NPR member stations in Super Tuesday states in the southeastern region: politics Reporter Sergio Martinez-Beltrán from WPLN Nashville Public Radio in Tennessee; News Director Michael Hibblen from KUAR in Little Rock, Arkansas; and from WUNC in Raleigh, North Carolina, Capitol Bureau Chief Jeff Tiberii. 

WNYC transcripts are created on a rush deadline and the text may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record is the audio record.

Richard Hake [host]: Today we're going to speak with three reporters from stations in Super Tuesday states in the south eastern region from WPLN, Nashville Public Radio in Tennessee, politics reporter Sergio Martínez-Beltrán. Sergio, good morning.

Sergio Martínez-Beltrán [guest]: Good morning.

Richard Hake [host]: From KUAR in Little Rock, Arkansas, news director Michael Hillblen. Michael, good morning to you.

Michael Hibblen [guest]: Hi, Richard.

Richard Hake [host]: And from WUNC in Raleigh, North Carolina, capital bureau chief Jeff Tiberii. Jeff, good morning.

Jeff Tiberii [guest]: Hello there.

Richard Hake [host]: All right. Welcome, everyone to WNYC. Thanks so much for joining us. Okay, Jeff, let's start with you. Yesterday NPR ran a story on the controversial endorsement of Bloomberg by the mayor in Charlotte. How does the rest of North Carolina see him?

Jeff Tiberii [guest]: I think that one way to look at Bloomberg here in North Carolina is to acknowledge that he has perhaps the most varied and diverse set of endorsements of any of the leading presidential candidates. So, Bloomberg has the back here, yes, of the Charlotte mayor, also of the Raleigh mayor., in addition, the leaders of the Democratic Party's Democratic caucuses at the statehouse and the State Senate. Now those are the minority parties at the state legislature, but both of the leaders of those respective parties and caucuses have supported Bloomberg. And you know, it's it's very much a fractured field here. Recent polling indicates to us that Bloomberg, Senator Sanders, former Vice President Biden are really running in a dead heat at this point, and the three of them we expect to gobble up most, if not all, of the 110 delegates that are available here in North Carolina on Super Tuesday.

Richard Hake [host]: Has Bloomberg been spending a lot of money there on advertising?

Jeff Tiberii [guest]: He's been spending a lot of money here on advertising millions upon millions. A very astute political observer said to me about a month ago if you didn't know any better You might think that the Democratic presidential primary here in North Carolina was between Michael Bloomberg and Tom Steyer. The two billionaires, because they're the ones that have been up and running so many advertisements, both on television and digital ads for really several weeks now.

Richard Hake [host]: All right, let's turn to Arkansas. As with many other states, Bloomberg has been spending quite a lot of advertising there, just like in North Carolina. But Michael, you say he's also been creating a lot of jobs with his campaign. What are people there saying?

Michael Hibblen [guest]: Well, people are, uh, I think the fact that he has spent more time here than any other presidential candidate is really boding well for him. He has he came here on the day when voter registration when candidates could file he came back last month and lead Little Rock's Martin Luther King Jr. parade. And a poll recently showed him in the lead among the Democratic presidential candidates, although it was within the margin of error, but I think people have been receptive to the fact that he has spent more time here than anyone else,

Richard Hake [host]: Now we can go to Tennessee. And that's where Bloomberg unveiled his health care plan back in December, which is more moderate than Medicare for All. So, Sergio, how are the voters you're talking with there feeling about Bloomberg?

Sergio Martínez-Beltrán [guest]: I think that's the key word, moderates. You know, let's keep in mind, Tennessee is a conservative state. President Trump is pretty much as popular as he was in 2016. And so a lot of the Democratic voters that I've talked to, they say that because Bloomberg is presenting himself as a moderate, especially with health care, they believe that some Republicans might even switch and decide to vote for for Bloomberg in the November 2020 election. So that's what they're thinking and that's the appeal here.

Richard Hake [host]: And what's the advertising like there for Bloomberg in Tennessee?

Sergio Martínez-Beltrán [guest]: Oh, he's spending a lot of money. We are seeing it in TV we're seeing in print media, in radio. And the other interesting thing is that he's also hired a lot of staffers here. He's opened a lot of offices in big cities in Tennessee and Chattanooga, Knoxville, Memphis, Nashville. And you know his grassroot movement in this state is growing.

Richard Hake [host]: Sounds like he's spending his money everywhere. Okay from WPLN. Nashville Public Radio Sergio Martínez-Beltrán, Jeff Tiberii of WUNC North Carolina and Michael Hibblen from KUAR in Arkansas. Thanks a lot, guys.

ALL: You're welcome. Thank you. Thank you.

Richard Hake [host]: You can find links to some of the reporting on our website at wnyc.org