primary and election early voting begins in Durham on April 28. It’s a quick turnaround after state lawmakers altered a redistricting plan.
Over the next
three days, Rev-elution offers endorsements for every office on the Durham
County ballot. This time-consuming process takes into consideration variables
reflective of the interest to Durham’s Black and Brown citizens.
Today, United
States Senate and United States House of Representatives.
United States Senate
Eleven
Democrats filed to replace Richard Burr who steps down after 18 years in the
Senate. In addition, 14 Republicans and one Libertarian join the race.
The
Republican Party
This is a three-person
race between former N.C Governor Pat McCrory, U.S. Congressman Ted
Budd and former U.S. Congressman Mark Walker.
Budd, endorsed
by former President Donald Trump, represents North Carolina’s 13th District
which includes Rowan County in the Charlotte metro area. His campaign focuses on
immigration, religious liberty and the economy.
Walker
represented North Carolina’s 6th U.S. House District from 2015-2021.
The district includes the Triad cities of Greensboro, Winston-Salem and High
Point. A former pastor, Walker considered challenging Senator Thom Tillis in
the 2020 primary, but backed out after Trump endorsed Tillis.
Recent
opinion polls have Tillis leading with 29 percent of supporters compared to 20
percent for Budd and 11 percent for Walker.
Rev-elution offers
no endorsement in the Republican Party Primary
The Democratic
Party
The
Democratic Party Primary is a less competitive race between Cheri Beasley,
former chief justice of the NC Supreme Court, Tobias LaGrone, a small
business owner, pastor and counselor and Beaufort, NC Mayor Rett Newton.
Beasley
narrowly lost her race to remain on the supreme court to Republican Paul Newby
in 2020. She was appointed to serve on the bench by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper
in 2019.
LaGrone, who
identifies as a conservative, is a pro-life Democrat. His platform focuses on access
to tech data, transparency in hiring, increasing tax credits for childcare and
the establishment of a national law enforcement malpractice registry.
Newton, a
retired Air Force officer, told the News & Observer he was inspired
to run for Senate after witnessing the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Rev-elution
endorses Cheri Beasley based on her background
and platform aimed at reforming America’s criminal justice system, emphasis on
fixing America’s immigration system and improving housing affordability.
united states house of representative's
district #4
The race to
fill the seat held by Congressman David Price beginning in 1987-1995 and again in 1997 until his pending retirement at the end of 2022, is packed with a diverse
group of contenders.
Nida Allam, a member of the Durham Board of County Commissioners, entered the race
shortly after Price announced his retirement. Allam, the first Muslim woman
ever elected to public office in North Carolina, is the daughter of Indian and
Pakistani immigrants. Born in Ottawa, Canada, she was raised in Wake County and
graduated from North Carolina State University.
She supports
the Green New Deal and promotes becoming a member of “The Squad” - Alexandria
Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ihan Omar (D-MN), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Rashida
Tlaib (D-MI) – four women of color elected during the 2018 midterm elections.
She enters
the race with a considerable war chest built from support outside of Durham. Allam,
28, has served as a member of the board of commissioners for less than two
years. Her tenure is marked with heavy disapproval from Black leaders due to
her lack of support for former Durham County Manager Wendell Davis. Allam cast
a vote not to renew Davis’ contract after members of the Durham Committee on
the Affairs of Black People (DCABP) assumed a promise that she would support
renewing the contract.
Valerie Foushee represents Chatham and Orange Counties as a member of the state senate.
She began her public service as a member of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School
Board in 1997. She is the first Black woman elected to the Orange County Board
of County Commissioners, leaving to serve in the NC House of Representatives
and later joining the NC Senate.
Foushee is a
primary Senate Sponsor, with Mike Woodard (D-Durham), of SB 646, the Marijuana
Justice and Reinvestment Act. The bill sets a series of definitions related to
cannabis, establishes the Office of Social Equity and several funds within the
Department of Public Safety, authorizes the personal use and possession of
cannabis for persons 21 years of age or older and provides protection for
patients and caregivers related to the possession or purchase of cannabis for medical
use.
Foushee
supports a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, ending privatized
prisons and supports increased regulation and funding for the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and increased investments into green transit. Passage
of the Green New Deal is one of her top priorities.
Richard
Watkins entered the race after shifting interest in
running for U.S. Senate. He earned his Ph. D from the University of Carolina at
Chapel Hill in Microbiology and Immunology with a specialty in Virology.
Watkins received
6.5 percent of votes (4,391) in the 2018 congressional primary election. Price received
77.1 percent of votes followed by Michelle Cotton Laws with 16.4 percent of
Democratic Party votes.
American Idol singer Clay Aikens
is giving it another shot after losing to Republican Party incumbent Renee Ellmers
in the 2014 general election for US. House of Representative in North Carolina’s
2nd congressional district.
Stephen Valentine, director of North
Carolina University’s Veteran Law Clinic, is a veteran of Operation Iraqi
Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, receiving the Bronze Star Medal for
service in Iraq.
Rev-elution has no endorsement in the
Republican Party Primary
Rev-elution
endorses Valerie Foushee due to her experience as
a member of the board of education, board of county commissioners, state House
of Representatives and service as a state senator. Rev-elution is concerned
regarding Foushee’s lack of attention to the voters in Durham County.
next up: state and local judicial seats
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