An article that illustrates the prevailing attitude towards third parties in North Carolina:

Judge Upholds Ballot Access Restrictions

It took a massive petition drive to get the Libertarians on the ballot this year. The candidates have largely been excluded from participating in debates, but UNC-TV (PBS) has graciously included the governor and lieutenant governor candidates in their debates.

There are usually some races in North Carolina that have only one candidate on the ballot (no competition), due to only allowing Democrats and Republicans to participate. When one side does not have a candidate (usually Republican), the other side (usually Democrat) is the only "choice". Doesn't sound very American, does it?