"The glossy, towering multiplex of Harrah's Cherokee hotel and casino stands out as an island of optimism in this otherwise bleak reservation town.

"It's all good fun!" exclaimed Jeff, a railroad engineer in his late 30s with spiky blonde hair, still cheerful on a recent Wednesday despite having lost a few hundred dollars playing poker.

Five floors above, Joy, a hair salon owner who, like others interviewed for this story, would give only her first name, was celebrating her 59th birthday at an Italian restaurant with white wine, cake and her best friend, also named Joy.

These are the types of voters that Democrats hope will once again swing the state for President Barack Obama in November. North Carolina's unemployment rate is nearly two points higher than the national average, and disappointment with the slow pace of economic recovery has been widespread. Still, the 10 casino employees and patrons who agreed to speak with The Huffington Post about the upcoming elections all said they feel better off now than they did four years ago.

But despite their economic optimism, only two said they were planning to vote for Obama."

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At North Carolina Casino, Mitt Romney's Odds Look Good (The Huffington Post 9/13)