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GREENSBORO — Each of the four leading Republican candidates for governor have spent much of the past month burnishing their conservative credentials and telling voters that their opponents are imitators.

"One of the only ways they really can talk about being conservative is to contrast yourself against your opponents," said Francis DeLuca, who leads the John W. Pope Civitas Institute in Raleigh.

With recent polls showing Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory leading, DeLuca said it's not a surprise that the other three candidates are contrasting themselves with him. DeLuca said he expects McCrory is in for heavy criticism in a debate Civitas is sponsoring tonight at the Koury Convention Center.

State Sen. Fred Smith of Johnston County is in second place in most polls. Former Supreme Court Justice Bob Orr and Salisbury lawyer Bill Graham trail, despite having campaigned for months longer than McCrory. A fifth candidate, Elbie Powers, a Sampson County pecan farmer, has not raised money or put together a statewide campaign organization.

Bill Graham

Graham first garnered statewide attention when he led a campaign to persuade legislators to cap the state's gas tax, and he returned to that success in an interview this week.

"I'm the only candidate in the race that has been able to achieve savings for the general public statewide," Graham said. The gas tax pays for road construction in North Carolina, an issue where the candidates agree North Carolina needs to do more. Does Graham think that by capping the tax he hurt state construction efforts?

"I think of it as bringing some discipline to the system," Graham said. "At some point, somebody's got to look after the average person. If you don't, you won't need any roads because nobody will be able to afford to drive on them."

Graham is the only one of the four leading candidates who has not served in an elected office, although he doesn't see this as a weakness. The state, he said, has problems ranging from managing its probation and parole system, funding road construction and children dropping out of school in alarming numbers.

"Are you kidding me? This is the kind of experience you want?" Graham said.

On immigration: Graham argues for suspending business licenses of those who hire illegal workers, inquiring as to whether applicants for community college or university slots are legal residents and whether their families are legal. He said he stands out from the other candidates on the issue because "I've been talking about this longer than any of them."

Pat McCrory

With polls making him the front-runner in the race, McCrory has been the target of attacks by his opponents who say he has been slack on immigration and allowed too much city spending as mayor.

"I'll take it as a sign that I've been a leader," McCrory said, who has basically had to answer charges that he is not a "real" conservative.

"I'm a conservative, but I'm not a self-righteous conservative," he said. "I don't believe I have all the answers."

McCrory argued that his record in seven Charlotte elections showed that he could win votes from Democrats and unaffiliated voters as well as Republicans, something the GOP nominee will need to do to win statewide.

North Carolina's growing problem dealing with criminal gangs has been an emphasis of McCrory's campaign.

"It's a new phenomenon that's attacking the citizens of North Carolina, and we're not responding to it," McCrory said.

On immigration: McCrory has touted his work bringing authority for sheriffs to detain illegal aliens, a claim other candidates have attacked as overplaying his role. McCrory stands by it, saying that he lobbied federal officials to create the authority. He said he favors building more federal immigration detention centers in North Carolina as well as an immigration court.

Bob Orr

Orr can lay claim to winning previous statewide races when he was elected to the state Court of Appeals and state Supreme Court.

Among the issues that he is best known for is opposition to economic development incentives, taxpayer-funded subsidies given to attract and keep private companies.

"Nobody has come up with an alternative solution other than me," Orr said.

He said the state should invest money it would otherwise spend on incentives to do things such as creating a small business loan program and helping workers gain new skills.

Other candidates have said they would not want to do away with the state's incentives program and McCrory has talked up his prowess as a job recruiter.

On immigration: Orr has attacked McCrory's record, saying he did not do enough to prevent illegal aliens from working on large city projects. Orr's own plan is to document how much the state is spending on health and education costs for illegal immigrants as well as on law enforcement. Then, he said, the state should seek reimbursement from the federal government.

Fred Smith

Smith has repeated during several recent debates that he is the only "true conservative" in the race.

When asked to define that term during an interview, Smith said his definition really has two parts.

"First, I'm a fiscal conservative," he said, saying that he believes government spending ought to be restrained and confined to core areas such as building roads and providing education.

"Also, I say I'm a social conservative. I believe values matter," Smith said.

Although he says that he is pro-life, Smith said he defined the term more broadly. "I'm not trying to get into any one religion here. I'm talking about things like doing an honest day's work for an honest day's pay."

Although Smith has served three terms as a state senator, his party has never held power during that time. When asked if the experience really prepared him to be governor, he acknowledged that much of his role has been as the "loyal opposition."

However, he said his work in the business sector, as a lawyer and as a county commissioner also prepared him to serve.

On immigration: "I have been a leader in fighting illegal immigration," Smith said.

He points to his record in the legislature, where he has co-sponsored measures such as one that would require a passport before issuing a driver's license to an immigrant. On his Web site, Smith writes that the state should urge the federal government to do more and that he opposes amnesty provisions for those here illegally.

Contact Mark Binker at (919) 832-5549 or mark.binker@news-record.com