Real Facts NC released a report today on key NC races in the 2018 midterm elections. Tuesday’s results included major victories with the election of Anita Earls to the NC Supreme Court, the defeat of the two “power grab” constitutional amendments, and the election of three Democrats to the NC Court of Appeals.
Democrats also broke the Republican supermajority in the NC House and, barring two potential recounts, look to have done the same in the NC Senate. Notably, first-time candidate Julie von Haefen beat long-time incumbent and chief budget writer Nelson Dollar. Democrats defeated almost all of the incumbent Wake and Mecklenburg Republicans and picked up two Western NC House seats.
Victories were dampened by the losses of close races in New Hanover County despite shifting tides in that region. Furthermore, four constitutional amendments passed, including the photo ID requirement to vote. A similar measure was previously ruled unconstitutional in 2016 for targeting African American voters “with almost surgical precision.” It is widely expected that Republican lawmakers will attempt to codify some of the same restrictions on acceptable IDs when they return to write the implementing legislation in late November. The right to hunt and fish and the victim’s rights amendments also require implementing legislation.
Some of Tuesday’s results made history, including the election of Pitt County’s first Black District Attorney Faris Dixon and first Black woman Sheriff Paula Dance. In Wake County, Gerald Baker overcame great odds to defeat four-term incumbent sheriff Donnie Harrison. John Arrowood became the first openly LGBTQ person elected to statewide office in NC and the south.
With an eye on potential recounts in Mecklenburg, the Triad, and Wilmington, here is a first look at the 2018 NC election results.
Read MoreIn December 2016 then-Governor Pat McCrory confirmed the legislature planned to pack the NC Supreme Court by claiming he worked to “deter efforts to expand” the court. Since December of 2016, Republicans have made several attempts at legislative selection of judges, culminating i…
Read MoreIn a WHQR interview on Wednesday, Rep. Ted Davis (R-New Hanover) tried to shift blame for his failure to fund DEQ to handle the GenX crisis to the Senate, DEQ, and his Democratic opponent, a first time candidate for office and political newcomer.
Davis began the interview by admitting his failure to stand up to the Senate. He claims he wanted to fund DEQ, but that the Senate wanted to fund the NC Policy Collaboratory. This resulted in funding for a body that can only research chemicals, not enforce laws or regulations to protect clean water.
Davis quickly shifted blame for this failure to DEQ, saying the agency could have shut down Chemours, the company responsible for putting GenX in the Cape Fear River for years. However, he voted for the 2017 budget that continued funding cuts to DEQ just days after news of the GenX spill broke and the 2018 budget that gave Chemours lobbyists everything they wanted.
He also doubled down on his questionable TV ad that implies his opponent, Marcia Morgan, a retired Army Colonel, possessed the legislative powers to solve the GenX crisis. When asked about how to bring more civility into politics, Davis again criticized Morgan for not doing enough.He cited his online petition to stop GenX pollution as a solution.
Morgan is outspoken on protecting drinking water.
Read MoreIn an ad, Mike Lee claims “I care about solutions, I believe people are more important than politics and I care deeply about underserved and often overlooked individuals.” However, Lee’s record in the Senate proves otherwise; he has consistently voted for legislation that hurts “underserved and often overlooked individuals.”
Despite Lee’s claims he cares about people who are underserved, his record proves he has failed people who are underserved time and time again. Mike Lee faces Democrat Harper Peterson in Senate District 9.
Read MoreAt the beginning of October, coinciding with the opening of FASFA applications for 2019, the NC Promise program launched an ad campaign to promote the new plan. “We Promise” aims to raise awareness amongst North Carolinians about the opportunity to utilize NC Promise, which UNC claims will make higher education more affordable for students, yet has many low-income students paying more out-of-pocket costs. The marketing campaign comes with a $1 million price tag.
The News & Observer reported that the legislature funded the marketing push but did not specify who requested the funding. A public records request for any correspondence between Margaret Spellings, President of the UNC System, Drew Moretz, Vice President for State Government Relations for the UNC System, Timothy Minor, Vice President for University Advancement for the UNC System, Andrew P. Kelly, Senior Vice President for Strategy and Policy for the UNC System, Camille Barkley, Associate Vice President for Media Relations for the UNC System, Josh Ellis, Associate Vice President for Media Relations for the UNC System, Clayton Somers, Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs and Secretary to UNC-Chapel Hill, Amy Auth, Director of State Affairs at UNC-Chapel Hill, and the North Carolina General Assembly turned up no communication. According to this, there was absolutely no communication about a $1 million ad campaign between any members of the UNC System’s senior staff.
Read MoreChris Humphrey is the Republican candidate running for House District 12. In an ad, Humphrey claims “Raleigh politicians have just one district: big cities. They push big cities to the front of the economic development line while small towns are left behind. Rural communities need a v…
Read MoreWe’ve written profile updates on several candidates running in 2018. They’re listed below with their challengers. With early voting happening until Saturday and Election Day only eight days away, Real Facts NC wanted to share an important resource. If you’re not sure what d…
Read MoreRep. Steve Ross (R-Alamance) is running for a fourth term in the North Carolina House of Representatives.
In a new ad, Ross claims he’s made several legislative decisions that help Alamance County: boosting teacher pay, safeguarding schools, protecting clean water and cutting income tax for 99 percent of families. His record proves otherwise.