NC Senate Republican Committee

Two Bombshell Polls in the Battle for the NC Senate

nathan — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 21:52:23 +0000

On Thursday, two respected North Carolina-based pollsters, left-leaning Public Policy Polling (PPP) and right-leaning Civitas, released separate bombshell polls that are rocking the North Carolina political world.

The Civitas poll shows Democratic Senator A.B. Swindell trailing Republican challenger Buck Newton 47-41 in the District 11 State Senate race. Newton is a first-time candidate running against 5-term incumbent Swindell in a district labeled “D+4″ in the NC Partisan Index (meaning Democrats traditionally hold a 4-6 point advantage).

In addition to that positive news for NC Senate Republicans, PPP released a poll showing Republicans leading the Democrats 49-41 in the generic legislative ballot. But the real news in this poll is the independent vote. Independent voters in North Carolina favor Republicans over Democrats 51-20. According to PPP, “If that holds through November the GOP will almost definitely take control of the General Assembly.”

Taken together, these polls vividly illustrate the growing momentum on the Republican side in North Carolina.

Let’s revisit the Civitas poll. Most election observers thought the NC Senate 11 race could be close, but few could have predicted a 6-point Republican advantage this early in the campaign. As with the PPP poll, the most telling results are with the unaffiliated voters:

Newton’s lead jumps to 54 percent-40 percent among voters who said they are most likely to vote in 2010. Additionally, unaffiliated voters are heavily backing Newton by a 62-17 margin.

“Senator Swindell appears to be in serious political trouble,” said Civitas Institute Senior Legislative Analyst Chris Hayes. “The overwhelming Republican wave running through the electorate is on the verge of sweeping him out of office.”

From Townhall.com: “North Carolina: Breaking More Than 100 Years of Democratic Control”

nathan — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 21:13:29 +0000

This week, the battle for the North Carolina Senate found its way into the national political discourse. Townhall.com, the popular conservative news website, ran a column by Ben Cannatti and Ford O’Connell called “North Carolina: Breaking More Than 100 Years of Democratic Control”. Here is a portion of the column:

1898 was a long time ago, so it’s unlikely that anyone remembers when the Republican Party last controlled the North Carolina Senate. 2010 may be the year that everyone’s memory of Republican victory gets a boost. With redistricting on the agenda next year, the GOP’s goal of a majority in the Senate could go a long way to leveling the playing field and keeping both the state senate and house chamber more balanced for years to come.

At first glance, the current 10-seat dominance of the Democrats would make it a safe bet for them to retain a majority in the Senate, especially with the built-in advantage of so many historically “safe” Democratic districts. However, a combination of Dem retirements and a strong national mood favoring Republicans is opening up an opportunity for the GOP. Polling confirms that 2010 could be a tough political year for incumbent Democrats, according to analysis from the North Carolina FreeEnterprise Foundation: “If the political winds are blowing at the backs of Republicans this year, it is going to be increasingly difficult for Democrats to hold seats in GOP territory.

Kudos to the North Carolina GOP for recognizing this opportunity early on, and recruiting candidates for all 50 seats. State Sen. Pete Brunstetter (R-Forsyth) summed it up back in July for the Winston Salem Journal, when he “predicted a strong Republican push this year.” It’s a full-court press in the Tar Heel state. By having a candidate in every Senate race, the GOP isn’t leaving any lanes open for the Dems.

One seat that is proving to be “increasingly difficult” for Democrats to hold is North Carolina Senate District 45, where Republican Dan Soucek, an eight year Army veteran, is seeking to oust two-term Democrat Steve Goss. While Democrats outnumber Republicans in most districts across the state, Republicans account for 43.7 percent of the electorate in the 45^th, giving them a larger share than the Democrats. The incumbent Democrat was narrowly elected in 2006 and managed to hold the seat in 2008, but voter trends and polling have led the North Carolina FreeEnterprise Foundation to label this district “Strong Republican.”

The North Carolina based Civitas Institute released a survey in May that showed the race to be a dead heat. “District 45 is a heavy Republican leaning district and given how close the polling here is today, will be a hard fought battle until November,” said Civitas Institute Senior Legislative Analyst Chris Hayes. “The balance of power of the NC Senate in 2011 will be decided by who wins in District 45.”

You can help Dan Soucek — and other NC Senate challengers — by doing three simple things today:

Subscribe to the NC Republican Senate Committee email list (in the top-right corner of the home page).
“Follow” NC Senate Republicans on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube (also in the top-right corner).
Tell your friends via email and social networks about the NC Senate Republican cause!

6 Seats for…6 Bucks?

nathan — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:08:05 +0000

If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times: 2010 is the best year in over a century for Republicans to win the majority in the North Carolina Senate.

But this is not a foregone conclusion. Internal polling shows tight races all across the state in the crucial battleground districts. Without your help, the dream of a conservative state legislature will remain just that: a dream.

6 seats.

$63,381.

The goal is to pick up six seats. The fundraising gap is only $63,381. Help us CLOSE THE GAP. With your online donation of $6 (yes, SIX DOLLARS), a conservative candidate in a targeted NC Senate race can send out 20 high-quality mail pieces to Unaffiliated, undecided voters.

Twenty undecided voters will hear the Republican message on jobs, cutting spending, lowering taxes, and responsible state government with your gift of $6.

If you can give more, great! But don’t let this day go by without doing something to support the conservative cause in North Carolina. Six bucks is a good start to winning those six seats!

Creative Loafing: “Bev Perdue:It Takes a Thief?”

editor — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 19:41:26 +0000

Yesterday, we brought you the story that Governor Perdue’s missing flight records from her 2008 gubernatorial campaign had mysteriously appeared in the form of a detailed Excel Spreadsheet.

Today, Tara Servatius at Creative Loafing, puts this news into perspective:

One of the ways that big donors funnel illegal campaign contributions to politicians is by “arranging” paid plane flights for them. (Candidates spend hundreds of thousands of dollars jetting around the state to raise money and campaign. It’s a major campaign expense.)

Candidates are supposed to disclose these flights by law; they are counted as contributions.

Former state house speaker Jim Black went to federal prison for swapping illegal cash in a bathroom. Trading cash for flight time for a candidate is the same thing, just one step removed. The campaign of Gov. Beverly E. Perdue did it 41 times (that we know of) without disclosing it. She says her campaign “forgot” to disclose them — all 41 of them.

Whether the planning for the flights took place in a bathroom is unknown. The guy who would know the most about them, the guy who drove the proverbial getaway car, wasn’t questioned by the State Board of Elections investigator. That’s because Board of Elections Chairman Larry Leake blocked the board’s elections investigator from grilling Perdue campaign and staff manager Zach Ambrose about the flights.

Then Leake, who was appointed to his position by Perdue, went a step further. He and elections officials deleted the part of the investigator’s report that noted that she hadn’t been allowed to interview Ambrose, the guy driving the getaway car.

Then they put out a letter saying they’d found no evidence of wrongdoing by Perdue’s campaign. Case closed.

Read the rest of the article at Creative Loafing.

It’s time for change in North Carolina’s leadership. Help the NC Senate Republicans win in November.

Perdue flight records appear out of thin air

editor — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 19:59:26 +0000

Seemingly out of thin air, Gov. Bev Perdue’s campaign released a computer spreadsheet to North Carolina investigators that shows that her staff kept detailed records of private flights taken by Perdue, provided by 2008 election supporters, which were not reported as campaign expenses. Previously, Perdue’s staff blamed the failure to report 41 flights on “poor record-keeping.” It would seem that the real reason the Perdue campaign failed to report the flights was simply “poor ethics.”

As reported in the News & Observer, Will Polk, the chief legal advisor in the Lt. Gov. Perdue’s office in 2008, said that in the spring of that year, the campaign staff had records documenting and accounting for all flights until then, according to Kim Westbrook Strach, the elections board’s lead investigator.

“Still, Perdue’s campaign failed to publicly disclose many of those flights until 2009, after reports surfaced about $60,000 in unreported flights provided to former Gov. Mike Easley, a Democrat. His campaign was fined $100,000 by the state elections board last year.”

This is the latest in a laundry list of scandals for North Carolina Democrats: Mike Easley, Mary Easley, Ruffin Poole, The State Elections Board, R.C. Soles, Tony Rand,…

2010 is the best opporunity in generations to relinquish the corrupt Democratic Party of North Carolina of some of its power. Help Republicans take back the NC Senate!

2010 Election: What’s at Stake?

editor — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 14:27:12 +0000

“This is the most important election in our lifetime!”

It’s a catchphrase that’s used all too often. We heard it in 2000. Again in 2004. And yet again in 2008. To be sure, generations past heard this maxim every four — or even two — years. Live long enough and you could vote in dozens of “most important” elections! But you can make a case that the 2010 election — nationally and especially in North Carolina — really is one of the most important elections in our lifetime. Why? Two words: 112 and redistricting.

As mentioned last week, it’s been 112 years since Republicans held the majority in the N.C. Senate. During that time span the GOP held the N.C. House majority once: four years in the mid-90s.

Now, the second word: redistricting. Each state has its own rules for drawing the electoral map every 10 years: the process we call redistricting. In some states the governor calls the shots. In others it’s a bipartisan process. In North Carolina, all of the power rests in the hands of the state legislature. Meaning, for the past 112 years — or 11 decades – the Democrats have had absolute and total control of North Carolina’s redistricting process: N.C. House, N.C. Senate, and U.S. Congress.

What has that uninterrupted control wrought? Let me introduce another word into the discussion: gerrymandering. Gerrymandering occurs when districts are deliberately designed for electoral purposes (i.e. to maintain power…for a century) thereby producing a contorted or unusual shape. Case in point: North Carolina’s 12th Congressional District:

Why is the 2010 election so important for the citizens of North Carolina? Because another decade of Democratic control of the General Assembly is the last thing our economy needs.

Help us close the gap and make sure there’s a conservative voice at North Carolina’s redistricting table!

NC Senate Republicans on the Campaign Trail

editor — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 05:00:56 +0000

Across the state Republican candidates for the North Carolina Senate are working hard: talking to voters, listening to their concerns, and contrasting conservative, pro-growth, pro-jobs ideas with the tax and spend policies of the Democrats in Raleigh and Washington. Here are some pictures from the campaign trail:

Republicans only needs to pick up 6 seats to win the majority in the NC Senate…for the first time in 112 years! Help them close the gap!

Brent Jackson: Conservative Farmer, Businessman for NC Senate

editor — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 14:35:54 +0000

Brent Jackson, Republican for NC Senate District 10 and successful agribusiness entrepreneur, appeared in this summer’s issue of The Vineline, the trade magazine of the National Watermelon Association:

W. Brent Jackson, a North Carolina grower-shipper and former President of the National Watermelon Association,won a May 4th primary and will compete for a seatin the North Carolina State Senate.

Brent serves as President of Autryville-based Jackson’s Farming Company,and won the Republican primary for a District 10 spot in the North Carolina Senate. He won 53% of the vote and will face Democrat Dewey Hudson in the November general election.

Jackson said that if elected, his priorities would include easing the regulatory burden on North Carolina growers, being an advocate for fair food safety regulations and ensuring that agriculture is not slighted in expected state legislation on water rights.

“We feel like we have an excellent opportunity to elect a conservative agriculture person,” Jackson said. “The Senate has a number of people who are Ag-friendly, but very few who make a living or have made a living off of the land.”

Any one wishing to support Brent’s run for the North Carolina Senate, please log on to his web site at www.brentjacksonforsenate.com and contribute to the campaign.

Good luck in November, Brent!

6 Seats. $63,381. Help Us Close The Gap.

editor — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 14:06:14 +0000

FACT: The last time Republicans held the majority in the North Carolina Senate, William McKinley was president.

Democrats have controlled the Senate since 1898.

FACT: Democrats have exploited a significant fundraising advantage to maintain their power.

Unions and trial lawyers gave $5.6 million to NC Democrats in 2008.

FACT: North Carolina Democrats’ legacy of wasteful spending, high taxes, and double-digit unemployment make them vulnerable for the first in over a century.

Recent polls point to dead-heats in several battleground districts.

For the first time in a very long time, North Carolinians have a chance to replace the entrenched, corrupt Democratic Party with new conservative leadership in the State Senate.

6 Seats. The GOP needs to win six seats currently held by Democrats to have its first majority since the 1800′s.

$63,381. The GOP needs to raise $63,381 to match the Democratic caucuses fundraising efforts for this year.

6 seats. $63,381. We need your help to close the gap in the NC Senate. Please donate today to the NC Senate Republican Caucus.

Help us close the gap!

Buck Newton Outraises A.B. Swindell in NC Senate District 11

editor — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 13:31:58 +0000

As reported in the Rocky Mount Telegram yesterday, Republican State Senate challenger Buck Newton, running against Democratic incumbent A.B. Swindell in District 11 (Nash and Wilson counties), raised more money from individual contributors in the second quarter by a three-to-one margin:

N.C. Senate Republican candidate Buck Newton reported last month that he raked in $49,950, outraising N.C. Sen. A.B. Swindell, D-Nash, in the second quarter. Newton lent $14,000 to his campaign and received almost $35,450 in contributions from individuals.

Newton, a Wilson businessman, is challenging Swindell, a five-term legislator, for his District 11 seat.

Newton’s contributions from individuals trumped Swindell’s $11,550 by a three-to-one margin.

Newton, who started the second quarter with $6,731, has grown his war chest to $52,905 to start the third quarter.

Swindell has more than $175,000 in his campaign bank account, after starting with more than $135,000. The vast majority of Swindell’s campaign earnings from last quarter came from political action committees, which gave $34,300 to his campaign.

But Newton said he believes the days of special interest groups buying elections in North Carolina are over.

“This election is about returning power to the people, and it is obvious my door-to-door efforts and grassroots campaigning are paying dividends,” Newton said in a release.

“The reports show individual citizens living in the district are funding my campaign, while his campaign is being kept alive on special interest money from outside the area,” he said.

Help Buck Newton and other Republican State Senate challengers close the gap against union-backed, special interest-supported Democratic incumbents. A conservative majority in the North Carolina Senate is within reach for the first time in 112 years.