Targeting key voter demographics in Guilford

President Obama and the Democratic Congress’ agenda hangs in the balance of the national outcome of today’s election. It’s also a crucial contest for a number of Democrats who either hold state office or are seeking it. In Guilford County, two of the tightest races are in NC House District 59, where 16-year Democratic veteran Maggie Jeffus is attempting to fend off a challenge from Republican Theresa Yon, and in the three-way contest for the open NC Senate District 28 seat between Democrat Gladys Robinson, Republican Trudy Wade and independent Bruce Davis.

Enter Yvonne Johnson, whose reelection defeat in last year’s Greensboro mayoral race, ushered in conservative control of city council. Johnson’s loss by 921 votes to Bill Knight came as a surprise to many of her supporters.

Johnson said she recorded a robo-call that went out to households where registered Democrats live with a message that highlighted the consequences of political complacency.

“I basically told people what happened last year about this time, because 10 percent of people came out to vote and the difference in turnout was just enough for me to lose my race,” Johnson said. “I said, ‘Get out and vote so some of these extremist people don’t get in power.”

That message could prove critical for Jeffus, along with Democrat Don Vaughan, who is defending his District 27 seat in the NC Senate. Democrats enjoy a significant advantage in each candidate’s district in voter registration, but Republicans tend to demonstrate more consistent turnout and have shown greater enthusiasm this year. Several precincts in northeast Greensboro where Johnson is a resident and household name hold deep reserves of registered Democrats, and their turnout could be critical to Jeffus’ and Vaughan’s reelection prospects.

Johnson’s call also likely benefits Gladys Robinson, the Democrat in the NC Senate District 28 race. Robinson is expected to split the vote of Democrats and African Americans with Bruce Davis, leaving Trudy Wade to pick up the Republican vote and a good portion of independents.

Wade has her own liabilities to overcome as a white conservative candidate in a district in which black voters outnumber their white counterparts, and a postcard sent out by her campaign last week seeks to mitigate against any racial solidarity black voters might feel towards Robinson and Davis.

“Trudy sent out an postcard with my picture on it and her picture side by side saying Trudy Wade and Yvonne Johnson talk about issues important to the African-American community,” Johnson said. “It gave a lot of people the impression that I support her. She didn’t get my permission and she didn’t inform me about it. I didn’t even know about it until I got my copy in the mail.”

Johnson said she is not backing any of the three candidates in the race.

“You’ve got two very capable African Americans running, so I have not been endorsing anyone,” she said. “I went out to the polls and voted for the person I thought would do the best job.”

Early indicators

As with the rest of the country, interviews with voters in Guilford County today indicate that the key question at stake in this election is whether President Obama's agenda deserves support or repudiation and whether the president's party should retain control of Congress. A similar dialectic plays out in state legislative races, with unrest among voters and Republican challengers highlighting the fact that Democrats have long controlled the General Assembly in Raleigh.

Against the expectation of a Republican wave, some glimmers of hope have appeared today for Democrats hoping to pull out tight races against GOP opponents. Compared to their registration numbers, Democrats in NC Senate District 28 turned out for early voting at higher levels than their Republican counterparts, while enthusiasm appeared to be about equal between the two parties in NC House District 59. And even in Republican leaning precincts in Greensboro's Irving Park neighborhood, along with Brown Summit and Jamestown, voters could be readily found who explicitly mentioned a desire to give President Obama more time to try to succeed in getting the nation out its economic slump.

Other indicators appear to favor the Republican Party. Long lines were reported this morning and high early voting numbers were logged at precincts that tend to be affluent and Republican-leaning. The Guilford County Board of Elections reports that voters waited for 45 minutes in one precinct in High Point, where additional interest has been generated by a municipal election for mayor and city council.

Before daylight, Cecil Livengood walked into First Baptist Church in Greensboro for Bible study. The church is a polling place for precinct G12, but Livengood had already voted. The registered Republican exemplifies the kind of passion and conviction his party hopes will batter down Democratic ramparts.

"They're a bunch of knuckleheads out there," Livengood said, when asked how he felt about the battle over the nation's direction. "They're trying to take this country to socialism with Obama as dictator."

Yet just as typical was Brian Haidinger, an accounts manager for a national office products company, who was headed out of Jamestown Town Hall after being told that he was at the wrong polling place.

"I'd like to see us continue on the path we're on to see if we can put some of these programs into place," said Haidinger, who is registered as an unaffiliated voter. "Everyone who says Obama has gotten nothing accomplished in two years and is driving the this country off the rails, it's utterly ridiculous. They don't remember where we were in January 2009. Anyone who says this country is going in the wrong direction, they haven't been paying attention. Private sectors jobs have been growing for nine months straight."

NC Senate candidate Gladys Robinson rallies A&T vote

Gladys Robinson, Democratic candidate for NC Senate District 28, greets voter David Kimber outside the Old Courthouse in Greensboro.

Gladys Robinson joined poll workers outside the Old Courthouse to greet students from NC A&T University this afternoon. The students marched downtown from campus to take part in early voting.

Robinson estimated that she spoke to a couple hundred students. The A&T vote could prove critical to Robinson, who ordinarily would enjoy the advantage as the Democratic nominee in a district that heavily favors her party. However, independent Bruce Davis, a registered Democrat — who, like Robinson, is African American — is expected to cut into Robinson's base among Democrats and African Americans in High Point, where is well known thanks to his representation on the Guilford County Commission. Meanwhile, Republican Trudy Wade is expected to do well in Republican-leaning rural areas such as Jamestown and Pleasant Garden, as well as with Republicans and conservative Democrats in Greensboro.

Robinson already had A&T freshman Rhonda Stewart's vote before the students had left campus.

"She seemed more honest and experienced," said Stewart, a native of Wadesboro who is voting for the first time. "I can feel something positive from her."

At 3:23 p.m., about 55 people had gathered at A&T's student union. Beloved Community Center organizer Joseph Frierson told the students they would be marching through the heart of campus in hopes that more people would join them along the way.

"Make your last phone call," he said. "Tweet this. Y'all got Facebook. Put this on Facebook."

On redistricting

Democrat Marcus Brandon (left) and Republican Lonnie Wilson, who are vying for the NC House District 60 seat, appeared together at a candidate forum in High Point.

Candidates for NC Senate District 28 and NC House District 60 raised some interesting perspectives on redistricting during a candidate forum hosted by the Delta Sigma Theta sorority at High Point city council chambers tonight. Redrawing state legislative and congressional district lines will be the spoils for what ever party wins control of the General Assembly in the next term.

Among the intriguing aspects is the possibility that North Carolina could pick up an additional congressional district, which some reason would logically fall in the Piedmont Triad.

As the discussion demonstrated tonight, there are a myriad of considerations when it comes to redistricting.

Gladys Robinson, Democratic candidate for NC Senate District 28: “All the time our state, our local and our federal government have not treated all citizens equally, and so we have required that we do some creative planning and some creative drawing of lines so we can have representation from all of our citizens. And that has been done in several districts in North Carolina and across the entire country, so that we can have representation that is diverse. That is the critical piece we have to look at, as we look at redistricting and as we look at redrawing district lines.”

Bruce Davis, independent candidate for NC House District 60: “From all that I’ve read and heard, that is a long shot, because we’re in competition with another state that has really got the numbers. But, with that being said, if we have the opportunity to have another congressional seat here in North Carolina, I am a strong voice in Raleigh to advocate very hard and aggressively to try to get this congressional seat to come through this area.”

Davis also said that although he is running as an independent, he is a Democrat and his decisions about redistricting would be shaped by his party affiliation.

Lonnie Wilson, Republican candidate for NC House District 60: “So far, I’m against all that’s been said regarding that. If we’re the other party, of course we try to reconstruct those lines in a somewhat more straighter line. Let it fall wherever a person lives, and not gerrymander a district to try to select one type of individual or race. And let freedom ring in our state and in our counties, wherever you live, and let’s be representative.”

Marcus Brandon, Democratic candidate for NC House District 60: “I want to make sure that we clarify when we talk about gerrymandering that gerrymandering is not only a practice that’s just for race. We have a lot of gerrymandered districts for parties, and I would like to see us have districts that are a little bit more equitable because when you talk about gerrymandering, my seat is like 65 percent Democrats, and you have some Republican seats that are just as Republican. That’s just as gerrymandered as anything else. I want to clarify: Gerrymandering, it’s not just a racial issue; it’s also a party thing that we also need to discuss when we talk about redistricting and having equitable representation. People are less accountable if they are only accountable to one party because of their seat.”

State legislative candidates square off at Greensboro forum

Republican Jeff Hyde (left) and Democrat Don Vaughan address voters.

The Clean Smokestacks bill, a piece of legislation passed by the NC General Assembly in 2002, became a reference point for an open debate about the role of government in regulating business during a candidate forum tonight at Congregational United Church of Christ in Greensboro.

“The environment for small business in North Carolina is a poor one,” said Jeff Hyde, the Republican candidate for NC Senate District 27. “We are overtaxed, over-regulated and the mandates that come down from government for business activity are stifling.”

Irwin Smallwood, a retired News & Record managing editor, probed Hyde on the point, asking him to name three regulations he would repeal.

“One instance would be we required Duke Power a couple years ago to spend $3 million to clean smokestacks on the idea that there would be a significance difference in the emissions of those smokestacks,” Hyde responded. “Since it’s been done, there’s no discernible effect. They’ve done exactly what the state asked them to do. And yet what’s happened [is] our energy costs have gone up.”

Hyde’s Democratic opponent, freshman Sen. Don Vaughan, was given an opportunity to speak, but steered away from conflict. Vaughan said that he believes in a free enterprise system and generally favors less regulation on business, and pivoted to a different issue: “I think our teachers are over-regulated in the classroom. I think we should give them more ability to handle their problems without having to go up the food chain.”

Pricey Harrison, the Democratic incumbent in the NC House District 57 race, used part of her allotted time to chastise Hyde.

“The Clean Smokestacks bill is one of the best things we’ve ever done to clean up the air here in North Carolina,” she said. “It reduced emissions by more than 70 percent and it’s been a tremendous tool. And we have lower asthma rates; we can actually document that.”

Harrison and her Republican opponent, Jon Hardister, sketched out different political philosophies, but remained cordial and avoided direct challenges against each other on the issues.

The two candidates demonstrated different approaches in response to a question about what services they would cut to make up an expected budget shortfall next year.

“Clearly, if we cut $3 billion out of a $19 billion budget, that 15 percent of what’s out there is going to be pretty serious, and I think we’ll set ourselves back decades in terms of the investments in education and quality of life – I think will severely undermine us," Harrison said. "I think there’s a place where we can cut, but we’re going to have to have some alternatives. Close the tax loopholes. There are a ton of those out there. That’s been sort of forbidden ground. A $100 million bank tax loophole. There are things like that out there we can look at. Review the whole tax code. I’m not an expert. There are ways to create more equity in the tax code because we don’t really have that in the tax code right now. But there’s some pork in the budget, and I’m frustrated by that. I tried to lead the charge to eliminate that $10 million subsidy that was going to the UNC Booster Club and opposed that mega port that was never going to get permitted. There are things like that in the budget, but I don’t think it’s going to add up to $3 billion. It might be a half billion.”

Hardister responded, “The first thing we’ve got to do is what you hear politicians say all the time: You’ve got to go through the budget line by line. We need to start doing that, but in particular, we need to go to zero-based budgeting. After that, to look for wasteful spending I would start with corporate subsidies and corporate incentives, excessive possible entitlement programs, and the discretionary spending. We need to really put a hold on discretionary spending until we get the budget under control. And then I think we need spending caps. We need a constitutional amendment that pegs allowable spending with changes in inflation and population. Because North Carolina for years our population has increased, but spending increased at a faster rate, so we need to tie the two together and also put a formula in there for inflation.”

Sparks flew between Republican Theresa Yon (right) and Democrat Maggie Jeffus, who are competing for the NC House District 59 seat.

Remarks by Democratic incumbent Maggie Jeffus and Republican challenger Theresa Yon, who are vying for the neighboring House District 59 seat, provided more discernible contrasts for voters.

Asked to provide an example of wasteful spending, Yon mentioned the state film tax credit, which was increased from 11 percent to 25 percent in the most recent session.

“The state of North Carolina taxpayers will now pay 25 percent of the cost of making movies,” Yon said. “It’s projected to cost us $160 million over the course of the next few years. Do we really want the taxpayers to pay $160 million?”

Jeffus defended the use of incentives to maintain the film industry in North Carolina.

“You all remember ‘Dawson’s Creek’?” she asked. “That has left. We have lost to Louisiana. We’ve lost to Canada. We’ve lost to Mississippi. We’ve lost to Georgia. The governor was right on the verge of – back in the long session, I guess – of announcing a film that was being filmed in North Carolina. She was sure we would get it. Only to find out the next day that Georgia got it. These film people, the people that produce them, they bring jobs into North Carolina. Guilford County does have a film office here, and films have been shot here in Greensboro and High Point – all around. So we’re talking about jobs. Construction. Production. Directors. Costumes. They stay in hotels and motels. They buy food. It’s just a no-brainer. We need jobs. And that’s what we’re trying to do.”

Yon retorted, “‘Dawson’s Creek’ went off the air; it’s not filmed anymore.”

Yon and Jeffus also parted ways on the issue of education, specifically on a proposal by Yon to require that a minimum of 65 cents of every dollar allocated for education be spent in the classroom.

“I know my opponent has come out against that publicly,” Yon said. “She says it will tie the hands of local education agencies, and I disagree. Guilford County may use that extra money in the classroom to pay teachers bonuses. Forsyth County might use it to buy textbooks. Another county might use it to replace their arts and music programs they’ve had to cut. Another county might decide, ‘We need an after-school reading program.’ But it’s spent in the classroom. If we took just three cents more of every single dollar and spent it in the classroom, that’s $210 million more in our schools without raising your taxes. The lady in maroon asked earlier if we can cut some administration. Yeah, I think we can cut some administration and put it in the classroom.”

Jeffus acknowledged her difference of opinion.

“I do oppose the 65 cents in the classroom,” she said. “I want everything that we can get for the schools and for the classes and for the children. She does not understand how the budget is done. And we do need to give them flexibility. It will tie their hands. That’s one of the things we do – we give a great deal of flexibility to the [local education agencies], and each LEA is different. What we need in Guilford County, they might not need in Carteret County or someplace else – Hoke County – so that they have the flexibility to do what they need to do. And I think most of them do a diligent job of putting it into the classroom. And a great deal of our education money goes to teacher salaries.”

Yon found an unlikely ally for her initiative in Marcus Brandon, the Democratic candidate for House District 60, who noted in his remarks that he was not opposed to mandating that 65 cents out of every dollar be spent in the classroom.

Brandon's Republican opponent, Lonnie R. Wilson, outlined a conservative Christian political ideology.

“Believe me, when you get up here, the elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top as much as it usually does, and you can’t remember everything you want to say," he said. "So I’m going to have to read some of my stuff. And I do believe this stuff that I’m reading. I do believe ‘In God we trust.’ And I do believe that our representatives should defend our ancient landmarks of Judeo-Christian values. And those we send to Raleigh should do that. And I am a conservative; I am a Republican. This is my first run for office, and maybe the only one.”

Broader themes related to longstanding Democratic control of the General Assembly and a the possibility of a Republican majority after the coming election emerged in an exchange between Republican John Blust and Democrat Alma Adams, who respectively face nominal opposition in their quest for reelection in safe districts 62 and 58. Libertarian Jeffery Simon and Republican Darin H. Thomas – neither of whom was present – are respectively seeking the District 62 and District 58 seats.

“The process is broken,” Blust said. “You see it in Washington. You see it in Raleigh. Rep. Jeffus just told you the decisions are all made in Room 612. And I’ve been out on the block before. I’ve knocked on over 13,000 doors in this community, and I’ve won elections, and I’m entitled to a seat in the room where the decisions are made. I can’t use force and I can’t be violent, but I resent that I’m shuffled off because, ‘You’re in the minority and you don’t get to. We’ll tell you and we’ll come out and we’ll give you a 300-page bill and you’re supposed to vote for it or you’re against education. You’re against the children.’

“And I’ve heard that over and over, and I’ve still studied,” he continued. “I’ve come up with proposals. When we redid the budget a couple years ago, I had five or six amendments. I run an amendment every budget. They set the process up so you can’t touch the decisions they’ve made in the back room. And it’s wrong. It has got to be opened up. The answer to the budget would be, let all 120 House members have some say. I resent it. It really angers me. I hear the same thing on television. I hear it out of the president. I hear it out of the Houser speaker. ‘The Republicans are the party of no, and they don’t have any ideas.’ If I don’t have any ideas, then you can let me in Room 612 and I won’t do a thing because I don’t have any ideas. But I have ideas.”

Blust added, “If Marcus Brandon wins and the Republicans have the majority – I’m more hopeful than ever – If Alma wins, I am not going to let the Republicans arrange that House the same way and say, ‘You don’t get to represent your people.’ It’s a blight on our constitution, our way of government. And we’re going to have to be willing as Republicans to lose some votes because we might run something and instead of getting people by cajoling them and threatening and having a $128,000 base-pay speakers aide go whisper in your ear, ‘We don’t have the votes, can you leave?’ let the body work. You might find the budget gets better. The process will work. The genius of our republic will let us pass good, solid budgets.”

Adams – like Jeffus, a senior budget writer – disputed Blust’s assertion that the room where the Appropriations Committee meets is closed, adding that it’s natural that the party in control will limit participation from minority members.

“I don’t want anybody to think that 612 is closed,” she said. “Rep. Blust, I don’t know how many times you’ve been in there. The door’s always open. The process – Rep. Blust was there when the Republicans were in control. The process – now, I’ve been there 16 and a half years – the process has never changed, no matter who’s in control. But we do work together. But there are some philosophical differences that are probably always going to exist. Now, how you change that I don’t know. I haven’t been able to change it in 16 years. When Speaker Brubaker was speaker when I came there or after I came there, I was silenced and could not present my amendments or speak. Some of those things are probably never going to go away. But I don’t want people here to think that we don’t collaborate and put legislation together. I mean, I filed a number of bills with three Republican women. I chaired the women’s caucus that actually the Republicans put me in. There is some civility. Whether that process is going to change from historically the way it is, I’m not sure how much we can do about that.”

Gladys Robinson was the lone candidate present for the NC Senate District 28 race. Republican Trudy Wade and independent Bruce Davis will also be on the ballot. Wade was unable to attend because she was participating in a previously scheduled neighborhood walk in the Greensboro City Council district that she represents.

Prompted by supporter Lewis Brandon, Robinson knocked Wade for a unanimous decision by the city council last month to delay approval of a $5 million federal grant through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to provide weatherization for buildings in east Greensboro last month. Minutes from the council's Sept. 21 meeting state, "Council discussion focused on the potential consequences of loan defaults and the City’s assumption of financial responsibility."

“I think it’s a travesty," Robinson said. "What we’re talking about now is how to grow jobs so we can improve the economy. So any source – federal or state or businesses or whatever – we can get to come into Guilford County that promotes jobs, we know that weatherization means better use of our energy, for one thing. But it also means that it’s low-income people whose houses can be weatherized, can have more efficient living. It also means jobs. And that’s critical. So I think that any of us who say we want to go to Raleigh and we want to create jobs to improve the economy, if we’re not supporting that and if the city council’s not supporting that and my opponent, then I’m not sure that those are the kind of people that we want in Raleigh.”

Democrats stand ground at Greensboro candidate forum

Don Vaughan, the freshman Democratic state senator who represents District 27, made a preemptive strike against an expected Republican onslaught during remarks tonight at a candidate forum sponsored by WOMAN at Mahi’s Seafood Restaurant in Greensboro.

Brandishing a copy of the News & Record, Vaughan made the case that the state is on the right track under its current leadership.

“I’m not going to bring you any doom and gloom,” he said. “I’m going to bring you fairly decent news right now. Now things have been bad, but by golly, if you saw Saturday’s paper, you know they’re starting to get better. And the headline here says, ‘North Carolina helping to lead nation to recovery.’ Things are starting to happen because of some things we did in the North Carolina Senate are helping to make this recovery. If you read this article, if you read USA Today, if you read the Wall Street Journal today, you know that this state and its policies – these are independent sources – things are beginning to work and things are beginning to turn around thanks to what has been done in Raleigh.”

Tea Party favorite Jeff Hyde, Vaughan’s Republican opponent, responded directly.

“Senator Vaughan just held up a newspaper article; it said, ‘North Carolina leads the nation out of recovery,’” Hyde said. “You know, those same newspaper sources said that we’ve been out of our recession since June of 2009, but we’ve heard speaker after speaker tonight talk about the anxiety that they have about the future of our schools, about prosperity in North Carolina, about the 19 months of double-digit unemployment.”

Hyde argued that if North Carolina scales back the size of its government based on the principles of the federal and state constitutions, it will enjoy prosperity again.

The appearance of the Democratic and Republican candidates for District 28 seat opened with the retirement of Sen. Katie Dorsett also presented a contrast for voters. Independent candidate Bruce Davis was not present.

Gladys Robinson, the Democratic nominee, acknowledged her lack of elective experience, and instead highlighted a range of civic activities.

“I am a community leader,” she said. “People say, ‘You’re not an elected official.’ Well, you get your best training in the community. I’m a PTA life member, and you really learn a lot in education. I was one of those persons on redistricting that advocated to merge three systems so we would have equity in pay for our teachers, so we could build buildings and schools across this entire county, so we would have good education for our children. I’ve been on the UNC Board of Governors for 10 years, and on that board we have built new facilities in our universities. We’ve instituted new programs.”

Republican Trudy Wade, a practicing veterinarian and a member of the Greensboro City Council who has also served on the Guilford County Commission, stressed her empathy with struggling business owners.

“I talk to clients all the time about how bad it really is,” she said. “But I sent out a fundraising letter like we all do. And if anybody knows about fundraising at this time, it’s terrible because the economy’s so bad. But I got one letter back from a veterinarian. And she sent 15 dollars. And she said, ‘It’s really all I have. And I wanted to send it because things are so bad that I knew you, being a veterinarian and a businesswoman, would understand that I can’t meet my loan payments. We may go out of business. I’ve had to let my employees go. But I’m sending you this 15 dollars in the hopes that people like you will get elected.’”

Wade added, “I can promise you that if I’m elected I’m going down there and I’m going to try to cut taxes, stimulate business, bring new businesses here and do what we need to do to bring North Carolina back to being competitive in this market and to bring new jobs here and get our people back to work and help the businesses that are here to continue to expand and supply jobs for all our people.”

Two candidates in the crowded race to replace state appellate judge Jim Wynn also made their pitch to voters.

Cressie Thigpen, who was appointed by Gov. Beverly Perdue to fill Wynn’s unexpired term, said, “I really didn’t know I could attract such a crowd. I kind of feel like Forrest Gump in the scene where Forrest is running and he’s got bullies after him, and his friend says to him, ‘Run, Forrest, run.’”

Stan Hammer, a Greensboro resident who practices law in High Point, said, “I’ve practiced law for nearly 25 years. I’m passionate about the law, and I’m passionate about public service. And I’m passionate about being able to work in a forum that will do justice and apply the rule of law for everyone.”

Hammer rapped the microphone to arrest a hum of feedback. Later, when another speaker was beset by the same problem, a murmur could be heard from the crowd: “Give ’em the Hammer.”

Thigpen and Hammer have 11 other opponents in the race.

Rep. Alma Adams, the Democratic incumbent in NC House District 58, played to an audience preference for her party by taking additional time at the end of the program to make the point that the Nov. 2 vote is “a critical election,” adding, “Whoever wins it depends on who turns out.”

Adams is defending her seat against Republican Darin H. Thomas.

Kay Cashion, who is running unopposed this year for her seat on the Guilford County Commission, came to the aid of her fellow Democrats by singing the praises of Adams and Maggie Jeffus, who represents NC House District 59.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank two representatives here tonight for the work that they did to salvage the funding for our two shelters at Family Services," Cashion said. "If you read the paper recently you will remember that funding was supposed to be cut in half – it would have just been devastating – for the High Point shelter and the Greensboro shelter. Rep. Jeffus and Rep. Adams and Sen. Katie Dorsett and Rep. Laura Wiley worked very hard to get this funding restored for this year, and I think we owe them a great round of applause.”

Candidates Robinson and Davis interviewed by PAC

Democrat Gladys Robinson and independent Bruce Davis submitted to questions from the Guilford County Community PAC tonight at New Light Missionary Baptist Church in Greensboro. The two are vying for the District 28 seat in the NC Senate, which encompasses east Greensboro and most of High Point. A third candidate, Republican Trudy Wade, was not present.

PAC treasurer Millicent N. Lee raised a question about whether the competition between Robinson and Davis might allow Wade to win the election. Both Robinson and Davis are black, and while Davis will be listed as an independent on the ballot, he is a registered Democrat who currently serves as such on the Guilford County Commission. The Democratic Party enjoys an advantage in voter registration in District 28, but has less margin of safety this year considering that Republicans are going into this election energized and mobilized.

“There’s talk that Bruce Davis and Gladys Robinson will split the community vote, and Trudy Wade will ease on in the door,” Davis said. “One thing about me, I study numbers. Personally, I don’t think – I could be wrong, I’ve been wrong once or twice – but the numbers do not support Trudy Wade. The race will be split…. To say that our community is split, first of all it was split because of the deception that was created. It will split no doubt, but I plan to be the victor when it splits. Trudy Wade – the numbers don’t support her. Our community is more in tune with what’s happening than at any time in the last hundred years.”

Davis has said he would have filed to run had he known that the seat’s current occupant, Katie Dorsett, would stand down. Dorsett upset many Democrats when she first filed for the seat, and then withdrew at the last minute, after which her friend, Robinson, filed.

Both candidates emphasized their humble backgrounds. Bruce Davis told the audience about his military service in the Marine Corps. Gladys Robinson highlighted her experience as a student activist at Bennett College working to improve working conditions for sanitation workers and cafeteria workers.

“We knew that something was wrong,” Robinson said. “Most of them were us.”

Robinson pitched her experience with healthcare and education.

“It’s important for you to know that, no, I’m not an elected official, so if you count that as experience, I don’t have it,” she said. “But if you count as experience being an advocate in this community for almost 40 years and working along side you, learning as I was a student at Bennett College and getting out in the community and working with people and their needs, ever since then working for the most vulnerable populations. I haven’t worked with the big businesses. I have worked with the people who needed jobs. I’ve worked with the people who are sick. I’ve worked with people who needed education. And I’ve advocated and helped teach people how to advocate because that’s what we need to do. So if you’re looking for background and experience as a community advocate, then I’m your person."

'Loaded, individualized questions'

Former Greensboro Mayor Yvonne Johnson took a seat next to me and whispered in my ear that "there have been some loaded, individualized questions" in the middle of a candidates forum at NC A&T University tonight.

To be sure.

Most of the heat took place during the final panel, which included primary opponents in NC Senate District 28 and NC House District 58, and individual candidates in NC House districts 60 and 62, after candidates for US Senate and US Congress had cleared the building.

One of the questions for NC Senate District 28 candidates Evelyn Miller and Gladys Robinson pertained to whether the candidates would have thrown their hats in the race if the seat's current occupant, Katie Dorsett, had chosen to run again.

Robinson looked offended.

After a moment's hesitation, Miller answered.

"I did not know that Katie Dorsett was not running," she said. "So yes, I guess that would answer the question."

Robinson regained her poise.

"Let me say very clearly, that I respect Dr. Dorsett," she said, "and no, I wouldn't run against her. And I would expect also, too, that most of you respect people like Mayor Yvonne Johnson and others who've done a great job and wouldn't run against them either because we have supported those candidates. They brought back assets to our community. Now I'm running because I can do a good job. And I know I can."

Marcus Brandon was the sole candidate present in the Democratic primary for NC House District 60, with an unexplained absence by incumbent Earl Jones. It was Michael Garrett, the Republican primary challenger, in the NC House District 62 race, who really pleased the predominantly African-American crowd with the energy and rhetorical finesse that he deployed in attacking incumbent John Blust — also absent.

Garrett took aim at Blust's uncompromising conservatism and partisan approach to politics, which he argued has made his opponent one of the most ineffective legislators in the House.

"We can't afford to mark one up for Republicans," Garrett said. "We can't afford to mark one up for Democrats. It's time to start marking one up for North Carolina."

Garrett added later that his responsibilities as a representative would be "not just for my district in northwest Guilford County, but for all of Guilford County. We're all in this together."

A supporter of Alma Adams, the Democratic incumbent in NC House District 58, asked the candidates if they understood the responsibilities of the job. Adams has held the seat for more than 16 years.

Primary challenger Ralph Johnson drew applause with his answer: "To represent the community."

Adams drove hard, alluding to her position as chair of the House Appropriations Committee: "I am in the room when the final decision is made about A&T. We brought $53 million to edge of the district for the nanotechnology campus."

Ralph Johnson asked voters to consider how the district has fared under Adams' leadership.

"Drive around east Greensboro, and look at the lack of amenities," he said. "Ask yourself: Is this the best we can do?"

Guilford educators back Gladys Robinson in state Senate race

The politically formidable Guilford County Association of Educators, which represents 3,300 education professionals, has made its endorsement picks. The endorsements are helpful to Democrats in the general election, and critical to Democrats in the primary.

Gladys Robinson has received association's nod over Evelyn Robinson in the Democratic primary for NC Senate District 28. Association President Tijuana B. Hayes said Miller did not return her questionnaire. Robinson — who is the favored candidate of the seat's current occupant, Katie Dorsett — boasts on her campaign website of endorsements from the State Employees Association of North Carolina, NC Trial Lawyers and Lillian's List.

The Guilford County Association of Educators endorsement slate strongly favors Democratic incumbents or candidates who have previously held office.

Democrats Alma Adams and Earl Jones, who each have contested primaries for state House seats, received the educators' endorsement, as did Pricey Harrison and Maggie Jeffus. The Republican primary victor in NC House District 57 will face Harrison in November, while Jeffus will go toe to toe with Republican Theresa Yon.

"Maggie and Alma are our A+ legislators," Hayes said. "They voted with the educators on issues that we felt were important. They voted for the Healthy Youth Act, the reinstatement of sick leave, the state health plan blue ribbon task force.... One that we're particularly proud of is the School Violence Prevention Act. We appreciate the probationary teachers appeals [legislation]. It assures that our probationary teachers are provided reasons for nonrenewal in their fourth year. Now, they can appeal to the local school board if their contracts are not renewed."

The educators endorsed Georgia Nixon-Roney in the Republican primary for NC House District 61. With no Democrats in the race, the candidate who prevails in the May 4 primary is all but certain to win the seat.

The endorsement for Guilford County School Board at-large went to incumbent Nancy Routh, and the District 2 endorsement went to incumbent Garth Hebert.

The association endorsed Bill Bencini in the Republican primary for Guilford County Commission District 2, but is remaining neutral in the District 3 race. Hayes said none of the three candidates in District 3 returned questionnaires.

The educators are endorsing Democratic incumbent Don Vaughan in the NC Senate District 27 race. Vaughan faces Republican Jeff Hyde in November.

In the Democratic primary for US Senate, the educators threw their clout behind Cal Cunningham, who is considered by many in the party as the most viable contender against Republican incumbent Richard Burr.

Candidate profile: Gladys Robinson

Democrat Gladys Robinson is the candidate to beat in NC Senate District 28.

Robinson is the hand-selected successor to Katie Dorsett, the sitting senator, who withdrew within an hour of the close of filing. While Republican candidate Trudy Wade holds government experience on the Guilford County Commission and the Greensboro City Council and widespread name recognition, District 28’s voter registration is heavily tilted towards the Democrats.

According to the latest statistics posted by the NC General Assembly, 56.8 percent of District 28 voters are registered Democrats, while only 27.5 percent are Republican. In contrast, District 27 — the only other state senate district exclusively located in Guilford County, which is represented by Democrat Don Vaughan — is only 50.3 percent Democratic.

Robinson faces Evelyn Miller, who serves on the Greensboro Zoning Commission, in the May 4 Democratic primary.

We sat down for a conversation that lasted about an hour this morning in the conference room at Piedmont Health Services Sickle Cell Agency on East Market Street in Greensboro, where Robinson is the executive director.

Robinson told me her campaigns three top priorities are economic development, education and, naturally, healthcare. The Piedmont Health Services Sickle Cell Agency serves six counties, and provides education, screening and case management services for sickle cell, HIV/AIDS and other high-risk diseases.

Robinson views a commitment to education and healthcare as an investment in economic development. “Without people having an education and good healthcare,” she said, “people can’t get good jobs.”

Robinson is a member of the University of North Carolina Board of Governors, where one of her central preoccupations is leveraging higher education into economic development and job creation. As an example, she said that Greensboro hotelier Dennis Quaintance credited the Center for Energy Research and Technology at NC A&T University with helping the Proximity Hotel attain LEED Platinum status. (LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, and is US Green Building Council’s top level of certification. The Proximity was the first hotel to attain the designation when it opened in late 2007.) She said she would like to see the state pump more money into such academic programs to promote the growth of green jobs. Similarly, she supports retraining low-skilled workers to make HVAC systems more energy efficient.

As another example of aligning workers with economic opportunities, Robinson reported that she attended a meeting of the NC Institute for Minority Economic Development that included several small business owners in the fields of construction and daycare services.

“Our population has become more gray and brown,” Robinson said. “How do they develop jobs and products? I’m almost 61. In a few years I’ll be Medicare eligible. People are living longer and reaching their 80s and 90s. How do we develop floors that they won’t skid on? We’re browning. As we are getting more immigrants, what are the needs? What are their needs for daycare?”

Robinson’s thinking about healthcare reflects the axiom that one should avoid being penny wise and pound foolish.

“What I know clearly is people walk into my clinics in Greensboro and High Point, and they don’t know they have high blood pressure and diabetes before they go the emergency room. We teach preventive health, nutrition; we teach how you can have an enjoyable diet, but a healthy diet.”

Robinson said she co-chaired a committee to bring a healthcare clinic to southeast Greensboro, and she recognizes a need for a clinic in High Point. She added that visits to community clinics are less expensive than to hospitals, in part because clinics employ student interns from area medical schools such as the program at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem.

“It’s going to decrease the costs in the long run, but you’ve got to invest in front,” she said.

Similarly, she said an improvement in K-12 education would allow the state to eliminate more expensive remedial programs that are currently necessary to get students up to speed once they enter college.

No one has much enthusiasm for raising taxes in an economic climate in which many property owners are financially strapped, so I asked Robinson how she would deal with the likelihood of another severe budget shortfall in 2011, if she is elected.

Robinson responded to the question by discussing personnel restructuring actions she signed off on as a member of the University of North Carolina Board of Governors to cut costs while preserving service levels.

“We made some hard cuts in administration in higher education,” she said. “We wanted to preserve teaching. Some of the administrators that had been there for awhile, they might have to teach some courses.”

As a first-time candidate, Robinson told me she has enjoyed campaigning, but the downside is the inordinate amount of time required to raise money. She favors campaign finance reform to cap the amount of money candidates can raise and spend, and to provide public financing for candidates that demonstrate viability.

We talked about political mentors.

Robinson described her friend, Katie Dorsett, as “stellar, in my mind.”

She learned just as much from the late Bill Martin, who held the seat before Dorsett. Martin gave Robinson her job at the Piedmont Health Services Sickle Cell Agency, and appointed her to the NC Commission on the Achievement of Minority and Low-Income Students about 15 years ago.

“He also taught me about workforce and getting people off of welfare,” she said. “We talked about, how do we develop a support system, especially for single mothers.”

Robinson met former Gov. Jim Hunt many years ago at L. Richardson Memorial Hospital when she was involved in eldercare services.

“Of governors, he really did a super job,” she said.

She told me she also admires Henry Frye and former Gov. Jim Holshouser, respectively a Democrat and a Republican, who served together in the NC House.

“Those two guys worked together so that we could have a UNC system for all of the state,” Robinson said. “If we’re going to have a quality university system, we need to fund all of our institutions, not just UNC-Chapel Hill. They really took a leap across party lines.”

Triad Elections ’10

Dorsett's decision leaves some Democrats (in) cold

I haven't talked to many high-profile Democrats in Guilford County Katie Dorsett's stunning about-face yesterday, but if one Earl Jones' comments are any indication not too many are happy about it.

Notwithstanding the field of Republican challengers, Dorsett appears to have been holding the seat in reserve for fellow Democrat Gladys A. Robinson. Jones, who represents District 60 in the state House, noted that other Democrats such as Guilford County Commissioner Bruce Davis have had their eye on the Senate seat. Davis unsuccessfully challenged Dorsett two years ago.

"If there were some people who wanted to run, like Bruce Davis but out of deference to her didn't file, it undermines democracy and denies the citizens a choice," Jones told me this morning. "It just doesn't look right. As an incumbent she had respect. Other folk who respected her position and thought she was doing a good job might not have run. It limited the field of individuals who would run."

Learn more about Guilford County elections at Triad Elections '10.