A Modest Proposal for Changing the North Carolina State Legislature

In light of yesterday’s ‘emergency legislative session’ to deprive North Carolinians of protection against discrimination, not to mention every other dunderheaded, regressive move our august governing body has made, I’m fed up.  Speaking of bodies and being fed, I’d like to endorse Jonathan Swift’s satiric suggestion in A Modest Proposal:  we could turn state senators and representatives into cash crops ready to cook and eat, thus contributing to the state’s economy – but I fear our state legislators would be tough to digest.

Obviously, the main way to get rid of these unsavory fools is to vote them out of office.  This is easier said than done, however, as gerrymandering and inertia have left very few districts actually competitive.  But there are some, and I propose that supporting the Democratic candidate in these districts by donating even a small amount of money could help take back the Legislature.

To that end, here’s a list of the State Senate races that Civitas has identified as relative toss-ups (well, maybe not toss-ups, but real races that Democrats have a fair chance of winning).  I’ve added a bit of information about the candidates’ positions, as well as the address of their campaign websites or Facebook pages.  I strongly urge people to consider donating to worthy candidates outside our home districts; if enough of us do, our monetary support might genuinely help effect meaningful change.

Next week, I'll do the same with competitive candidates for the State House of Representatives. (Update March 31:  This is now done; access it on the right, archive list -- "More Modest Proposals . . . ")

District 1 (R+3) Incumbent Bill Cook (R-Beaufort) has served two terms in the Senate and one in the House. Cook’s first election to the Senate was in 2012, when he won by only 21 votes – garnering 50.01 percent of the vote. In 2014 Cook won with 53.4 percent of the vote. He will face Democrat Brownie Futrell in the General Election.  Futrell is the retired (Pulitzer-Prize-winning) publisher of the Washington [NC] Daily News.  Among his issues are strengthening public education and protecting the state’s natural resources. To find out more about Brownie Futrell, and to donate (it’s the box near the upper left), visit his Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/Brownie-Futrell-419095028284027/

District 9 (R+4)  Michael Lee (R-New Hanover), the Republican incumbent from Senate District 9, was first appointed to fill Thom Goolsby’s unexpired term in August 2014. He ran for the office in November 2014 and won 55.4 percent of the vote. Goolsby had won the district with 54.2 percent in 2012. Lee will face Democrat Andrew Barnhill in the General Election.  A lifelong resident of Wilmington, Barnhill has degrees in law and religion from Duke University; he is committed to improving the state’s infrastructure, education, and business climate. To find out more about Andrew Barnhill, and to donate:  http://andrewbarnhill.com/

District 15 (R+2) Incumbent John Alexander (R-Wake) has served only one term in the state Senate. He won the seat left open by retiring Sen. Neal Hunt in 2014 by getting 50.4 percent of the vote. Hunt won his last election in 2012 with 55.8 percent of the vote. Alexander will face Democrat Laurel Deegan-Fricke and Libertarian Brad Hessel in the November General Election.  Deegan-Fricke supports raising teacher pay, expanding ‘green’ programs, and providing higher quality women’s health care.To find out more about Laurel Deegan-Fricke,, and to donate:  http://www.laurelfornc.com/

District 17 (R+3) Tamara Barringer (R-Wake) is the incumbent in the state Senate District 17 race. Barringer was first elected to the Senate in 2012 with 53.7 percent of the vote. In 2014 she won with 58.4 percent of the vote. Barringer did not face a challenger in the March 15 Primary, but will have challengers in the General Election, including Democrat Susan Evans and Libertarian Susan Hogarth.  A resident of Apex, Evans is currently a member of the Wake County Board of Education, and improving education in NC is her signature issue.To find out more about Susan Evans, and to donate:  http://susanevansncsenate.com/

District 18 (R+1) Incumbent Chad Barefoot (R-Wake) was first elected to the House in 2012 with 55.9 percent of the vote and won re-election in 2014 with 52.9 percent of the vote.  Barefoot will face Democrat Gil Johnson in the General Election.  Youngsville resident Johnson, a member of the Franklin County School Board and former chair, wants to strengthen NC public schools and to move North Carolina forward. To find out more about Gil Johnson, and to donate:  http://www.giljohnsonsenate.org/index.html

District 19 (D+3) A Republican in a “D+” district, incumbent Wesley Meredith (R-Cumberland) is in his third term in the state House. In 2012 he won with 53.9 percent of the vote and won re-election in 2014 with 54.5 percent.  Meredith will face Democrat Toni Morris in the General Election.  Morris is a licensed counselor whose main issues are education, the environment, and healthcare. To find out more about Toni Morris, and to donate:  http://www.tonimorris4ncsenate19.com/

District 25 (R+3) First-term Incumbent Tom McInnis (R-Cumberland) beat one-term incumbent Democrat (Gene McLaurin) in 2014 with 50.4 percent of the vote.  McLaurin won in 2012 with 53 percent of the total vote. McInnis had no Primary challenger, but will face Democrat Dannie Montgomery in November.  (I cannot find a website or Facebook page for Montgomery.)

(Cartoons by John Cole, swiped from NC Policy watch)