After years of changes to Judicial Campaigns in NC, the GOP has created balance on the Court of Appeals and the NC Supreme Court. Of course, the Editorial writers with the Observer don’t like that. No surprise there. The GOP swept the statewide judicial races on Trump Coattails, a comprehensive election strategy, and a ton of very hard work by GOP Volunteers. Barnett writes, “President Trump carried North Carolina and brought a wave of his backers to the polls. Republican judicial candidates did well, winning all five available Court of Appeals races and two Supreme Court races, with the race for chief justice still in the balance.” Newby will hold on to win the Chief Justice race and that makes a clean sweep by the Republicans of the Judicial Races.
In the December 1st, 2020 Observer, Barnett argues that it was a bad idea to remove partisan labels and government funding of campaigns for judicial office as it politicizes the bench. I would argue that it has made the campaigns more competitive and a judicial bench more representative of the state. The Supreme Court has a 6-1 Democrat Majority and after the 2020 election 4-3 Democrat majority.
What the editorial writers are most afraid of is that the Dems have to defend two Democrat seats in 2022. After the 2022 election, the court could move further to the right bringing judicial philosophy in line with the average NC Citizen.
Barnett argues further, that the Dems need to hold those seats due to redistricting litigation. What the Observer fails to recognize is that they are threatening litigation on maps that haven’t been drawn yet. The Observer, which serves as the mouthpiece for the Democrat Party machine in NC, is telegraphing the play the Democrats intend to call. A play which will be funded by Eric Holder’s out of state Special Interest PAC.
Democrat Party elites are haunted by the reality that the GOP will draw maps. Maps that will be drawn in an open process. Maps that should garner bipartisan support. Maps that are exempt from a Governor’s Veto. These party elites know already that the NC Voter doesn’t share the same mindset as they do of very liberal policies. The Democratic Party Elites knew that the only way to accomplish their goal to transform the State of NC to mirror the liberal elitist bastions of California or New York was to control redistricting. The NC Voter saw what was happening and rejected it.
Let us be mindful that the GOP victories this year were in districts drawn by Democrats and selected randomly by the state lottery machine. It wasn’t maps or bad candidates that cost Democrats elections in North Carolina. It was the NC Democratic Party shift to the left that is out of step with NC Voters.
NC is not a Blue state. It is not a purple state. NC is a center-right state. Generally, elections for the past generation have proven that, and 2020 is a further example.
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