Showing posts with label democrat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label democrat. Show all posts

Friday, September 26, 2008

Cumberland County and Fayetteville, NC Voter Guide - November 4, 2008

Being a knowledgeable voter is not easy. Hopefully every voter knows who is running for President by now but what about your local officials? What do you know about them? Do you even know what offices you can vote for? I know I don't know them all. When it really comes down to it too, your local officials have a lot more of an affect on your day to day life which makes their selection all that more important.

The best way to know who you can vote for is to go download a sample ballot. This way you will know exactly who and what will be on your ballot in the voting booth on November 4th. You can even fill out the sample ballot and take it with you.

The first thing you should do is check your voter registration. When I last checked, there was a link to download a sample ballot there. That is the easiest way to make sure your voter registration is up to date and to get a sample ballot. Also make note of your precinct as that is how you will know where to go to vote. (Once you know your precinct go to the Cumberland County polling locations page to see where to go. Google is also working on a voter info site but it is not yet complete as of writing this.) If you don't see your registration or ballot listed, call the Cumberland County Board of Elections at 910-678-7733, tell them your name and verify your address. I asked about a way to look this up yourself on their website since Cumberland County has 34 (34!!) different ballots and was told that there should be something up to do that soon (so look before you call).

So, if you live in Cumberland County, I've listed are all the people you may be able to vote for (depending on your precinct) along with links to their campaign sites. If I could not find a campaign site, I have not linked to anything. I will update this if I find any more. I was pretty disappointed not to find many sites for most of the County Commissioners and Board of Education offices.

US President


US Senate


US Congress (District 2)


US Congress (District 7)


US Congress (District 8)


Governor

There were a number of Gubernatorial debates. Several were with Perdue and McCrory and several were with McCrory and Munger. The only debate with all three candidates was the one on October 15th. You can watch the debate with all the candidates here.

Lieutenant Governor

You can watch the NC Lieutenant Gubernatorial Debate online. This debate took place on September 17th.

Attorney General


Auditor


Commissioner of Agriculture


Commissioner of Insurance


Commissioner of Labor


Secretary of State


Superintendent of Public Instruction


Treasurer


NC State Senate (District 19)

  • Tony Rand email (Democrat)

NC State Senate (District 21)

  • Larry Shaw email (Democrat)

NC State House (District 22)


NC State House (District 42)

  • Marvin W. Lucas email (Democrat)

NC State House (District 43)


NC State House (District 44)


NC State House (District 45)


County Commissioner (District 2)


Register of Deeds


Supreme Court Associate Justice (Edmunds Seat)


Court of Appeals Judge (Martin Seat)

  • John C. Martin

Court of Appeals Judge (Wynn Seat)


Court of Appeals Judge (Tyson Seat)


Court of Appeals Judge (McCullough Seat)


Court of Appeals Judge (Stephens Seat)


Court of Appeals Judge (Arrowood Seat)


District Court Judge (District 12) (Devan Seat)


District Court Judge (District 12) (Dickson Seat)

  • John W. Dickson

District Court Judge (District 12) (Pone Seat)

  • Ed Pone

Board of Education (Dsitrict 1)


Board of Education (Dsitrict 2)


Board of Education (Dsitrict 3)


Board of Education (Dsitrict 4)


Board of Education (Dsitrict 5)


Board of Education (Dsitrict 6)


Soil and Water Conservation Supervisor

  • Reuben Cashwell
  • D. H. Vinson
I can't find much of anything on this race but what I have found is here.

One last note, please, please don't vote a straight ticket. Evaluate each candidate for each position against the other candidate(s). If you still can't decide, just leave it blank. It is worse to vote blindly than to not vote at all. I hope this page makes your research easier and helps you to make a knowledgeable decision about who to vote for.

Other Resources



Images used in this post are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.0 Generic and Attribution-No Derivative Works 2.0 Generic respectively from myJon and Steve Rhodes
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Saturday, September 13, 2008

The 2008 Presidential Campaign is Depressing Me

And they're off! Since the end of the Republican convention the 2008 Presidential campaigns have kicked it into high gear. I was really looking forward to this election. First, there was no way George Bush was going to win this one. Second, we have 2 candidates who looked like they were going to run positive campaigns and tell us why they should be elected instead of why their opponent shouldn't be elected. I'd much rather vote for the candidate who is going to be the best for our country instead of trying to decide which candidate is going to be least terrible.

But of course all the hopes of a positive campaign have since disappeared. Mr. 9/11 (Rudy Giuliani) got things warmed up at the Republican National Convention with personal attacks by belittling being a community organizer and misrepresentations, all with the laugh of a hyena (Giuliani RNC 2008 transcript). I could overlook that though. I knew Giuliani was an ass before his speech and was just glad he wasn't the one on the ticket. I was hopeful that Alaskan Governor and VP candidate Sarah Palin would turn us back on a positive note but she spouted out more of the same. We got the same community organizer line and more "this is why our opponent is bad" (Palin RNC 2008 transcript). Some say this was all "red meat" for the party loyalists. Fine, but party loyalists aren't the only ones watching. Undecided voters are watching too.

Moving on from the Republican convention things really got crazy though. There were all the investigations into the complete unknown Sarah Palin. Some comments surrounding her went too far but there certainly was no media conspiracy to smear her. The media was doing their job investigating an unknown candidate and all the dirt they found was all new, all at once. It is their job to keep politicians in check. Either way, the pundits can say what they want. I want the facts and then I am most interested in what candidates have to say and what their campaigns put out. What are their talking points. What are their tv and radio ads?

When we get to this phase of the campaign though, things went farther down hill. Misleading statements are flying around faster than you can keep up. I think the piece Blizzard of Lies by Paul Krugman covers all the big ones so far the best. (if you only read one link from this post, read that one) Maybe this video pointing out the distortion of the truth by the McCain campaign will enlighten you some too.

Politics are dirty and politicians lie. That is a known fact. It is so known that it is often a joke. But it is a sad joke because the truth of the matter is negative campaigning works. Look at George Bush's win in 2004 as a good example of this. We even have a new term for this now: swiftboating. The saddest part is people believe these lies and then vote based on them.

The thing this week that pushed me over the edge though was a story on NPR where voters in York, PA Examine Race. The comments in that story that really stuck in my mind were the lady who did not trust Barack Obama. Let me quote:
Leah Moreland, the woman who said she grew up sheltered from prejudice, plans to vote for McCain. Party loyalty is also part of her decision. But her cultural compass also comes into play. She says her gut tells her not to trust Obama.

"I look at Obama, and I have a question in my mind," she says. "Years ago, was he taken into the Muslim faith? And my concern is the only way you are no longer a Muslim is if you are dead, killed. So in my mind, he's still alive."

Although Barack Obama has said repeatedly he is not a Muslim and has never been a Muslim, Moreland is still unconvinced.

"There is something about him I don't trust," she says. "I don't care how good a speaker he is, I just can't trust him."
After I heard this, I cried. Seriously. The claim that Barack Obama is Muslim is a one of those lies left over from the primaries but people still believe it and that is what scares and depresses me the most. It is just not true. This lie about Obama was not enough to bring the emotion about to make me cry though. It was the combination of it being false yet people will still base their vote on it but most importantly that it doesn't matter even if he was. There is nothing bad about electing a Muslim president even if he was. I don't see our country doing that anytime soon but it isn't a bad thing if we do.

How can we have a functioning democracy without educated citizens voting? Our elections have come down to talking point and smears. Who said what and what is your life story are important when they shouldn't matter so much. We need to vote based on what candidate has the best policy and the best ability to carry out those policies.

I want the best President, not the least worst President.
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Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Durham, NC - Democratic Primary Voter Guide - May 6, 2008

Looking for the 2008 Republican Primary Guide for Durham, NC instead?

This is just a page of links to the candidates campaign websites for the Democratic Primary in Durham, NC on May 6, 2008. I know I am missing some races because I only looked at 2 of the sample ballots. If I could not find a site, I did not link to anything. As I got farther down the list and the races got more local and smaller level offices, finding sites became much harder. Sites also started not being the top result or even on the first page. That is kind of sad. They need some SEO help. At least they have sites. Maybe my links here will help their ranks. Many of these candidates only have a week left though because they won't make it to the general election.

Also, I am very disappointed in our local newspapers and other media. Their election sites are very incomplete, hard to find, some are not up to date and they are all just generally crappy. The ones that are still showing info from the last election are the ones that piss me off the most. No one is going to use a voter guide in 2008 with Mike Nifong on it! They obviously do not care about the primaries. It is hard enough as it is for voters to get good candidate information. At least we can get it straight from the candidates now. Get with the times old media!

Also, did you know that you can print out a sample ballot that will be exactly what you will see when you get to the voting booth? First, go to check your voter registration and make note of your precinct number. Then go find you ballot based on your party affiliation and precinct.

Without further ado...

President

US Senate

Governor

Lieutenant Governor

Auditor

Commissioner of Insurance

Commissioner of Labor

Superintendent of Public Instruction

Treasurer

NC State Senate District 20

District Attorney District 14

Durham County Commissioner (Vote for 5)


Other Resources:

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Friday, March 21, 2008

I'm a registered Democrat again, Yay!

A few months ago I changed my life long registration as a Democrat to Republican. It was a pretty big deal for me but I changed it because I like choices. I figured I'd be ok with the Democratic candidate for President regardless of who it was (ok, I wouldn't have been too keen on John Edwards but I wouldn't have been repulsed). I knew I would have problems with some of the Republican candidates though. I despised the idea of Mr. 9/11 (Rudy Giuliani) being our next fear mongering President. I didn't think much of Mitt Romney either and despite liking Mike Huckabee a lot as a person and a candidate, we don't need 4 more years of the religious right making our country look like loons.

Now back to why I switched parties. I switched so I could help expand my choice in the general election. I knew if my choice was between a Democrat and Giuliani, Romney or Huckabee then it didn't matter who the Democrat was. They would get my vote.

If the Republican was McCain or Ron Paul, then I could actually listen to the candidates arguments, watch the debates and make a real decision. I was actually planning on voting for Ron Paul in the Republican primaries. Now, I am not as sure I would have really liked Ron Paul as President but I do like his libertarian views. Free Markets, Free People.

Since McCain is definitely now the Republican candidate, my vote for Ron Paul would have been purely symbolic (more so than it likely would have been if the race was closer at least). I switched my registration back to Democrat because of choice. I would much prefer to choose the Democratic candidate if I don't have a choice in the Republican candidate.

And I choose Barack Obama.

I am ready for a fresh face and Bush - Clinton - Bush - Clinton would not be a fresh face. More so, Hillary Clinton is a very entrenched career politician. That does not appeal to me.
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