We detailed the potential challengers to Richard Burr in the last post. Now, it’s up to you all, the readers, to decide: who should Democrats nominate to go up against Burr in 2016? (If you’re a Republican, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments, but don’t vote in the poll! This is for Democrats only.)
For the poll, there are a whole bunch of candidates to choose from. I left off candidates like Roy Cooper and Josh Stein, who are clearly running for other offices, and I also left off Anthony Foxx, who has said he isn’t running. But if you like them or someone else, click the “other” option and tell us your pick in the comments below.
This won’t be a representative sample since readers of this site tend to be more liberal than the average NC Democrat, but it ought to be interesting nonetheless. There haven’t been any polls to my knowledge on a 2016 Democratic primary, so in the meantime this might be the next best thing.
John Wynne is the “conservative voice” at PoliticsNC, where he also provides polling analysis and commentary on legislative campaigns. When not writing about politics, he enjoys gardening and listening to opera. Contact: johncwynne@gmail.com.
I really don’t like any of these candidates. I really don’t know who would fit the bill.
Erkine Bowles
Yes – why is Jim Hunt vetting anyone? In October 2013, Hunt donated $1000 to Republican Justin Burr who turned around and donated $1000 to the Republican running for State House where Hunt is registered to vote. It looked suspiciously like Hunt was donating to a Republican running against a Democrat in his own district? To the best of my knowledge, no one in the media has ever asked Hunt about this, or about the story last February that he was raising money for Democratic candidates? Heath and Kay are too blue-dog to win in our state. Anyone who thinks that regular voters will be motivated to get out the vote for someone who is only less worse than the Republicans really needs to get a clue! And while I supported Janet Cowell while she was in Raleigh City government, and when she was a senator, and then when she ran for Treasurer, her close-ties to Wall Street banksters and her stance on the private contracts given to hedge fund managers for the State Employee Pensions makes me wonder if regular North Carolina voters will support yet another blue dog? Get a clue politicos – the Moral Monday outrage against the Republicans grew out of the HKonJ protests against the so-called “business-progressive” Democrats who controlled this state till 2010. Those folks who marched the last two years won’t be satisfied with going back to the same old Democrats in charge – it’s time to share the wealth. And I am afraid that no one on that list will really represent the needs of the vast majority of North Carolinians who are desperate for jobs than pay a decent wage. They won’t get any of that until we rebuild the Democratic Party to the level where we can use our new strength to leverage our elected public leaders to turn our platform into public policy OR ELSE!
Exactly! Wonderful comment! Of course! Well said! We have work to do!
I personally agree that Democrats should try and get progressive candiates elected, but I’m not sure NC is urban enough at this point to do that. For example can you really picture a liberal Democrat from, just as an example, Chapel Hill, winning enough rural votes in a general election to beat out a more conservative candidate in NC? I think at this point “Blue Dogs” are democrats best bet in making gains in NC…at least until NC gets to the point where winning the urban counties alone is enough to win statewide (as has recently started happening in VA)
Heath, Kay, and Janet are the only ones with leads on the national money required to beat Burr. Realistically, he’s unbeatable by anyone but Kay. I’m abandoning my dreams until Anthony Foxx is ready to run.
I don’t recognize 3 of the names of the list, and recognize a few others only by name b/c they are Blue Dogs who recently left office (or about to in the case of Mike)….and I follow politics! The average voter in NC is not going to be familiar with most of the people on this list, unless they are in a particular congressional district…this could make it harder for democrats to retake the seat against incumbant Burr…
We don’t even know what the main issues in NC are. We don’t even know what each person thinks about the issues. We don’t even know what each person looks like or background. This poll is way, way too early. Let’s spring a surprise on Burr later.
It would help to include a photo of each potential candidate, as far too many voters don’t care about the politics, they don’t bother reading the positional statements, they don’t listen to speeches; they just need a good-looking candidate and a snappy slogan to get them out there to vote. An articulate, progressive one would be even better for NC. We must find one who fits BOTH bills.
Of these choices, former congressman Brad Miller seems to be the closest we have to a progressive fighter. Janet Cowell is very much of the Hillary/wall street wing of the party. Hagan is a cautious centrist with a neocon streak and a banking background. Cal Cunnigham is less known but may be the worst of the bunch. When he ran in 2010 I had the chance to see him speak at a local democratic party dinner. I asked him where he stood on the legalization of marijuana and he laughed at me for a while before giving a meandering answer that amounted to “The war on drugs has been a failure but Im not going to take any controversial positions on drug reform.”
Roy Cooper
Yeah, what David said. Honestly, I don’t know which of these choices is a corporately bought-off Rethuglican-lite “Democrat” (ala Clinton), which might WANT to do some good, but has no courage to put it out there (ala Hagan), and which is a progressive freedom fighter (the only one I’d get enthusiastic about)!.
I think you need to add a little sub-poll… how many people know enough about everyone on the list to make an informed decision about which ONE would be the best for NC!… or maybe you need the INDY to put out their PoliticsNC candidate poll guide before we vote in this poll!
Rev Dr William Barber (NAACP)
This it? This the burning issue for the people of NC ..for Democrats? All the stuff very wrong in this state and all ya got is two three days of Burr and the 2016 Senate campaign. No discussion or discourse about all the issues facing this State and this is all ya got? Wow.
Dan Blue or Cal Cunningham. NOT Hagan. And why is Jim Hunt doing the recruiting for this??
Cameron Kent or someone who would serve as a statesman, not a politician.