This post contains my predicted winners for primaries in Cumberland County, including state, local, and congressional races. But first, a few motivational words about voting from Willie Stark:
All of these races are closed partisan primaries so I’ve reached across the aisle for some insight. Remember, my predictions are not endorsements. With that said, here are the picks:
We’ve blogged about the Democratic Primary in District 19 multiple times on this site. It’s an intriguing race featuring two candidates that couldn’t be more different, but it’s turned exceptionally ugly in recent weeks. Most of the battle is being fought in the mailboxes of likely Democratic voters with glossy attack ads. Today, a new wrinkle emerged that took me and many observers with their political ears to the ground by surprise.
In a recent interview with the Fayetteville Observer, Ed Donaldson claimed that his entire campaign is “self-funded.” The campaign finance reports back this up, as Donaldson appears to have loaned his own campaign over twenty grand. More importantly, he hasn’t reported a single donation.
Back in October, I wrote an article for Up and Coming Weekly about judicial redistricting. I argued the Republican majority in Raleigh was attempting to gerrymander judicial districts on racial lines to gain an advantage in the North Carolina courts. This will lead to further partisan and racial divide in a place that should, in theory, be free from racial bias and party influence. The Republican majority has yet to succeed in these redistricting plans, but they are now pushing forward with a different sort of power-grab.
The Governor of North Carolina has held the power to fill vacancies in our District Courts since they were first created by statute in 1965. A bill introduced in the House of Representatives will alter 50+ years of law and tradition.
Even though you’re reading a political blog, you might not know the answer to this question. I’m going to give you a little background about the 8th District, how we got to where we are, and where we might be heading.
For a while now, the 8th has stretched from Charlotte to Fayetteville with old textile mill country in between. There are different media markets on both ends (Charlotte having its own and Fayetteville using a combination of Raleigh/Wilmington networks) so getting out a consistent message is difficult for any candidate.
A Republican has held the 8th since 2000, with the exception of Larry Kissell, a Democrat who kept the seat for two terms (2008-2012) after riding Obama’s coattails to his first victory. The lines were gerrymandered in 2011, and Kissell got creamed in the next election by Republican heir Richard Hudson.
Last month, we predicted a quiet Democratic Primary in NC Senate 19 unless one of the candidates threw a punch. Well an uppercut has been thrown, and like everything in politics at this moment, it’s tied to President Trump. Ed Donaldson, who has thus far run a minimal campaign, went after Kirk deViere’s past in the following mailer to Democratic voters:
Donaldson’s attack is effective for multiple reasons:
Cross Creek Divide 