What’s changed and what hasn’t
Here’s some of what’s changed since Tuesday. Donald Trump is now the President-elect of the United States. The Republican Party is no longer the conservative party. It’s also not imploding like so many people (including me) thought. Instead, it’s now the populist...
Divided we stand
The first indication I had that Tuesday might be bad for Democrats came at the end of early voting. By my count, 240,000 Republicans showed up to early vote who had not voted at all in 2012. In addition, almost 70,000 African-Americans who voted early in 2012 had not...
Earth shattering
Bad election nights are starting to become the norm for me. The last good one was eight years ago. Last night, though, was bad in a special and scary way. I don’t trust Donald Trump to do the right thing. I don’t believe that the Republican Party can constrain him. I...
The most important election
Every election cycle we hear candidates and partisans call it the “most important election of our lifetime.” Until now, that was hyperbole. This year is truly the most important election of my life, and not because I’m on the ballot. The choices are stark and clear...
Data versus enthusiasm
This weekend, a couple of photos on twitter summed up the difference between the Clinton approach to the election this year and the Trump approach. WRAL reporter Candace Sweat tweeted, “Just blocks away from each other, both @NCGOP & @NCDemParty headquarters make...
Polls, news, and the state of the race in NC
Polls have been all over the map this election cycle, particularly in North Carolina. I doubt the electorate has been moving nearly as much as the numbers. The polls probably more accurately reflect the news cycle than the voting population. When revelations about...
Burr exposed
One of the casualties of this election cycle is Senator Richard Burr’s anonymous mediocrity. For years, he’s been in Congress, made very little noise, gotten very little done, and gotten re-elected. He’s a forgettable character on the national stage, but he’s never...
What will the Jessecrats do?
Last week, I got a call from a friend who grew up with me. He’s a recently retired law enforcement officer and he wanted to talk politics. Even though he can’t vote for me, he’d seen my ads on television. His first question was, “You’re a Democrat, right?” I said,...
Good news for the NC GOP?
Early voting seems to indicate that GOP claims that they’re ready for GOTV are true. While Democrats have seen a drop in the number of in-person early voters since 2012, Republicans are seeing an increase. According to Dr. Michael Bitzer, Republicans have shown up at...
The payoff for betting on a wave
My first election working in politics was 1994. I was helping on a state senate campaign in rural North Carolina. We had put together a good organization and had a small direct mail program. We were feeling good about our chances when the wave on Election Day knocked...
