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Tea Party champion Rand Paul will campaign alongside Thom Tillis in Raleigh Wednesday morning, trying to shore up a base that could threaten North Carolinas Republican U.S. Senate hopeful.

Entering the final month of his race against Democratic U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan, Tillis faces lingering resistance from libertarian and tea party conservatives.

Some plan to vote for him reluctantly. Others wont vote for him at all.

There is no way we could even remotely get behind him, said Jane Billello, who chairs the Asheville Tea Party. We would have to abandon and betray everything we believe in. And its not going to happen.

North Carolina could help determine control of the Senate, where Republicans need a net gain of six seats for a majority. Hagan holds a 3.5-point edge over Tillis in Real Clear Politics average of recent polls.

A close race could give groups like the tea party outsized influence.

Its the difference between 49.9 (percent) and 50.1, said Duke University political scientist John Aldrich. Its very likely their decision that tips it one way or the other.

Tillis won 47 percent of the vote in Mays GOP primary. But nearly as many voters cast ballots for his top two conservative challengers. Getting them to vote for Tillis appears to be a struggle.

Many tea party conservatives are disaffected with Tillis.

That stems in part from his refusal to attend several tea party-sponsored primary debates and the perception that hes the establishment candidate who represents politics as usual. Last November, a dozen sign-carrying tea party activists protested a Charlotte fundraiser for Tillis that featured former White House adviser Karl Rove.

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John Aldrich comments: Tea party activists remain wary of Thom Tillis in U.S. Senate race