Recipe tips, baseball and the pledge: How NC Lt. Gov. candidates try to stand out
In an especially crowded primary election candidate field, candidates to be North Carolina’s lieutenant governor are using unique tactics to find the spotlight.
There are mailers and fundraisers and endorsements, and of course policy positions. But there’s also marijuana and the Pledge of Allegiance.
The incumbent, Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, is running for governor. The open seat has drawn 15 candidates.
The Democrats:
▪ N.C. Rep. Chaz Beasley of Charlotte;
▪ N.C. Rep. Yvonne Lewis Holley of Raleigh;
▪ Ron Newton of Durham;
▪ Allen Thomas, a Hoke County commissioner;
▪ Bill Toole, a Charlotte lawyer;
▪ Sen. Terry Van Duyn of Asheville.
The Republicans:
▪ Buddy Bengel, a New Bern businessman;
▪ Deborah Cochran, former mayor of Mount Airy;
▪ Former U.S. Rep. Renee Ellmers;
▪ Greg Gebhardt, a National Guard soldier;
▪ Mark Johnson, state superintendent;
▪ John T. Ritter, a West End attorney;
▪ Mark Robinson of Greensboro;
▪ Former N.C. Rep. Scott Stone of Mecklenburg County;
▪ N.C. Sen. Andy Wells of Hickory.
The tactics
Here’s how a few of the candidates are trying to get attention beyond the usual ways.
▪ By air: Gebhardt is an Army veteran and has been a policy advisor in the legislature. He has promoted his campaign by air, with a Piper airplane.
”We are very blessed to have the opportunity of honoring our state’s rich history of aviation by taking to the skies, traveling the state to meet voters and share our message of freedom, opportunity, and the American Dream,” Gebhardt said in a statement when his campaign announced the flights.
▪ Saying the Pledge of Allegiance: Gebhardt again. The Pledge of Allegiance received attention after the Bladen County elections board chair threatened audience members with arrest if they disrupted the board’s meeting by reciting the pledge, The N&O previously reported. The board later changed course and decided to include the pledge in meetings.
Gebhardt held a “Right to Pledge” rally in February, the Bladen Journal reported.
In the state legislature, the House begins each session with the Pledge of Allegiance. However, the Senate does not. Both chambers are controlled by Republicans.
▪ Cannabis: Toole’s campaign ads have marijuana legalization front and center, advocating that strictly regulated cannabis could be a boon to the state. Other Democrats, especially those running in the agriculture commissioner primary, think so, too.
▪ Cooking shows: Toole again. His YouTube videos include “Cooking Tooles” recipe videos, like one for summer gazpacho, along with the usual campaign clips.
▪ Butter Syrup and baseball: Bengel of New Bern is a businessman whose campaign bio and video highlights his community work, but also his history as a former minor league baseball player. Bengel owns the Morehead City Marlins. (He also co-owns a restaurant and sells a condiment called Butter Syrup.)
Getting the LG job
Being lieutenant governor of North Carolina doesn’t bring the power that it does in other states. It does bring in a salary of $136,699, with the latest raise, which is the same as the other Council of State members.
While Democratic candidates have the voter draw of a hotly contested presidential primary, Republicans may not be as inclined to get to the polls as they would be if they were picking a presidential candidate.
Donald Bryson, president and CEO of the conservative think tank Civitas Institute, told The N&O that in a crowded primary field, voter turnout is a factor, but it also comes down to name recognition.
Civitas’ polling of lieutenant governor primary candidates shows that multiple candidates poll higher in the areas where they are from, like Bengel, Debra Cochran and Renee Ellmers, he said.
The March 3 primary may not end with a nominee for either party. There could be a runoff, or second primary, if a candidate fails to receive more than 30% of the vote and the second highest vote getter calls for a runoff.
Look up your voting information here.
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This story was originally published February 28, 2020 at 1:01 PM with the headline "Recipe tips, baseball and the pledge: How NC Lt. Gov. candidates try to stand out."
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