Friday, May 09, 2008

Reflections on the primary…

A few thoughts from Tuesday’s primary results:

* U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry’s sweep of all 10 counties of the 10th Congressional District appeared to mean a lot to the congressman, at least symbolically. He mentioned taking Catawba County several times in interviews.
What the development means is debatable. Challenger Lance Sigmon ran an aggressive campaign, but raised surprisingly little money and entered the race with virtually no name recognition. However, Catawba County is Sigmon’s home turf and the heart of McHenry opposition.
Sheriff David Huffman, by comparison, won Catawba County with about 60 percent of the vote in the 2004 runoff election against McHenry. McHenry won Catawba County Tuesday with 51 percent of the vote, compared to 66 percent district-wide.
Some observers feel Democrat Daniel Johnson could be a more formidable opponent than Sigmon. Well-known in Hickory, Johnson drew great support in the city on Tuesday. He’s already raised more money than any Democrat in years.
The general consensus is Johnson will have to win Catawba County by a fairly wide margin, take a couple of other counties and stay competitive in McHenry territory to pull the upset.

For more, click below.

Thursday, May 08, 2008

A Closer Look at Tuesday’s Election

The following are a few notes and interesting facts from Tuesday’s election.

Click below.

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Allran wins ‘greatest victory’

Could N.C. Sen. Austin Allran be unbeatable?
The 15-term North Carolina legislator defeated Catawba County Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Kitty Barnes Tuesday with by a convincing 2-to-1 margin. With great name recognition and a base of support throughout Catawba County, Barnes appeared to be Allran’s most serious threat to date.
But longtime politician used his usual grassroots support to easily brush off Barnes’ challenge.

Click below for more.

Incumbents and favorites win

There were no surprises tonight.
U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry, N.C. Sen. Austin Allran and two Catawba County Board of Commisssioners defeated primary challengers Tuesday.

This is the story for Wednesday’s print edition (minus an obvious error regarding re-election in the second paragraph).

Saturday, May 03, 2008

Who won the money raising game?

The following are fundraising totals for candidates of the three major races in Catawba County from Jan. 1 through April 16.

10th District Congressional Race
Winners: R - Patrick McHenry $871,844, D - Daniel Johnson $217,061
Losers: R - Lance Sigmon $94,454, D – Steve Ivester $28,428

N.C. Senate 42nd District
Winners: R – Kitty Barnes $83,046
Losers: R – Austin Allran $29,039

Catawba County Board of Commissioners
Winners: Barbara Beatty $7,025
Losers: Jack Beach $2,511.84, Dan Hunsucker $100, Phillip Parlier (declined to file, under $3,000 requirement)

Friday, April 25, 2008

Allran offended by Barnes ad

A television ad by Republican challenger Kitty Barnes offended longtime N.C. Sen. Austin Allran. Allran called the ad “extremely misleading and extremely hypocritical.”
The ad mentions more than 40 tax increases Allran supported during the past three years despite signing a pledge to oppose any and all taxes. Barnes admits to supporting the hotel occupancy tax increases Allran favored along with recent sales tax and property tax increases.
But Barnes points out she didn’t sign the pledge. Allran did.

Click below for Thursday’s article.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Allran and Barnes spar at candidate forum

A verbal sparring match between North Carolina Senate candidates Austin Allran and Kitty Barnes highlighted Tuesday’s candidate forum at Rock Barn Golf & Spa. The acrimony in the race is growing, espeically after a Barnes television ad critized Allran for voting for 41 tax increases.
What appeared to be one of the most interesting primary races involving two high-profile Republicans is meeting expectations.

The competition is even seen on this blog. As I write this post at 10:15 p.m. on Tuesday, there are more than 2,000 votes on our poll question involving Allran’s effectiveness. That’s by far a record number of votes for the blog and yes, it does seem extreme.
There is a time frame as to how often people can vote if anyone is wondering.

The following is the story from my able colleague, Sarah Newell. I had other reporting duties later in the day and couldn’t attend.