4
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2004
Volunteers guard voters’ rights
BY JAVAERIA QURESHI
STAFF WRITER
Election Protection’s legal hot
line center was buzzing with cha
otic energy all day Tuesday as vol
unteers provided advice and legal
counsel to voters all across North
Carolina.
Volunteers for the statewide,
nonpartisan organization that
aims to answer voters’ questions
dealt with inquiries about regis
tration information, precinct loca
tions, identification requirements
and absentee and provisional bal
lots.
By 5 p.m. Tuesday, 140 incidents
in North Carolina had been report
ed directly to volunteers working at
the organization.
In addition to the 80 law stu
dents and lawyers who staffed
Pretzel shop joins business fatalities
Rent, competition force Monday close
BY ZACH JEPSEN
STAFF WRITER
After three years of business,
Katie s Soft Pretzels closed Monday,
leaving one more empty storefront
on Franklin Street.
Owner Chris Stott said Katie’s
main problem was not getting
enough customers. “A store like mine
does require a lot of foot traffic.”
Stott said it was difficult for
Katie’s to attract enough custom
ers in its location at 125 E. Franklin
St., next to Pepper’s Pizza.
“There’s a lot of factors as to why
the volume of people on Franklin
Street wasn’t consistent with the
volume needed to support a place
like Katie’s,” he said.
Competing with The Streets at
Southpoint in Durham and on
campus stores was one of those
problems, Stott said.
He said there were other diffi
culties. “Rent certainly isn’t cheap
on Franklin Street.”
But Stott said he had a great
working relationship with his land
lord. “There is a community sense,
especially among the merchants.”
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Y The Yearbook of UNC
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*November 1-5 and November 8-12*
llam-2pm & 3-6 pm
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Vice Chancellor for Research and
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Cordially invite you to attend
A campus talk introducing the
Renaissance Computing Institute
"Renaissance Computing: An
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Presented by
Daniel A. Reed
Chancellor's Eminent Professor
Director Renaissance Computing Institute
Vice Chancellor for Information
Technology and CIO
Friday, November 5,2004 • 1:00 p.m.
3 121 Hanes Art Center, UNC Campus
nn m
the hot line at the Institute of
Government, volunteers also moni
tored polling stations and on-site
incidents.
“The point is to make sure that
everybody who is entitled to vote
gets to vote and that their votes
are counted,” said Lynn Fontana,
a plaintiff employment lawyer in
Durham and a 1987 UNC School
of Law graduate who volunteered
at the hot line.
Throughout the day, volun
teers dealt with reports of time
limits being imposed at some
Mecklenburg County polling sites.
Callers said voters who spent lon
ger than five minutes at the polls
were forced to leave.
The time limit poses a serious
problem by rushing the disabled,
the elderly and those who need spe
He added that the Chapel Hill-
Carrboro Chamber of Commerce
was an excellent working partner.
Stott said he had made efforts to
extend his business’s life. “I tried to
get some catering or off-site sales
to offset the lack of foot traffic.”
Stott said he hopes his business’s
closing will work to help Franklin
Street in the long run.
He said landlords and prop
erty owners have to become more
involved in their businesses to bet
ter current conditions in the busi
ness district. “If you could get half
the landlords committed, then there
would be a surge (in business).”
He added that better park
ing also would improve business
downtown.
University Florist owner Charles
House agreed that he would like to
see the parking processes restruc
tured downtown.
When parking spots aren’t filled,
the rates are raised when they
should be reduced, he said.
“There needs to be some creative
ways to deal with the parking situ
ation,” House added.
From Page Three
rial language assistance, said Sarah
Zambon, a UNC law student and
founder of the University’s chapter
of Just Democracy.
“These are repercussions of hav
ing such a great turnout, which is
great,” said Zambon.
Callers also reported that staff
ers at some Mecklenburg sites
called people to vote by their
registration numbers. Voters
who had been waiting for hours
watched in frustration as some at
the end of the line got to cast their
ballot first, some callers said.
Discouraged, many left without
voting.
Volunteers at the hot line con
tacted Election Protection poll
monitors and told them to dissuade
voters from leaving.
Also in Mecklenburg County,
Stott said he is glad the city is
taking steps toward improving
Franklin Street.
“I do think the free buses were a
stroke of genius,” he said. “It could
potentially be a real big boom.”
But businesses will continue to
close unless things change, he said.
Scott Maitland, proprietor of
Top of the Hill restaurant and for
mer chairman of the chamber, said
business turnover is normal.
“You can’t freak out too much,”
he said. “The process is natural.”
House said the reasons a store
closed shouldn’t be speculated.
He said instead that it is impor
tant to emphasize Franklin Street’s
Republicans lose at least 3 seats in N.C. House
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
RALEIGH At least three
North Carolina House Republicans
lost their seats Tuesday to
Democratic challengers, a big step
for Democrats who hope to con
trol the chamber for the next two
years.
The Senate also appeared to
remain under Democratic con
there were reports of a black
woman being harassed and
accosted when she tried to vote in
the wrong precinct, according to
a volunteer.
Hot-line volunteers contacted a
local attorney to look into the case
and referred the woman to the
Department of Justice.
Zambon said she recognized
that there were some complaints
the hot line would not be able to
address in one day.
“At the very least I hope voters
feel that their concerns are being
met and they have somebody who
is listening to them so that they do
not feel disenfranchised so that
they have a voice.”
Contact the University Editor
at udesk@unc.edu.
growth.
Regarding future plans, Stott
said he would like to see Katie’s Soft
Pretzels and his other business,
Katie’s Kitchen at Northgate Mall
in Durham, operating together. “I
hope one day to be back in Chapel
Hill with that all under one roof.”
While there were hardships,
Stott said he was glad he worked
on Franklin Street.
“I got a great response. People
loved our product,” he said. “It’s
just a shame there weren’t enough
of them.”
Contact the City Editor
at citydesk@unc.edu.
trol for another session, although
the GOP knocked off first-term
Democratic incumbents Joe Sam
Queen of Haywood County and
Cecil Hargett of Onslow County.
In New Hanover County,
Democrat Julia Boseman nar
rowly beat first-term Republican
Sen. Woody White, according to
final, unofficial results. The victo
ry would make her the first openly
gay legislator in North Carolina.
Republican Reps. Sam Ellis and
Don Munford of Wake County lost,
as did eight-term Rep. Joni Bowie
The road to success is always under construction...
Department of Housing and
Residential Education Has
Your blueprints for successi
Resident Advisor Timeline
Spring 2005 and Fall 2005 Candidates
RECRUITMENT SESSIONS
November 3 7pm Craige North Seminar Room 172
November 5 12pm Student Union 3206A
November'S 3pm Ehringhaus South Seminar Room 176
November 9 7pm Carmichael Fishbowl
NovemberU 6pm Mangum Lounge
November 16 3pm Morrison South Seminar Room 174
November 17 6pm Graham/Aycock 3rd Floor Lounge
November 18> 12pm Student Union 251 SA
November 5, 2004 at 9am...Applications are available online only
November 22, 2004 at spm...Applications are due
December 2 and 3, 2004...lnterviews conducted
December 14, 2004... Spring 2005 candidates notified of status
January 24-February 25, 2005... RA Seminar sessions
March 11, 2005...Fa1l 2005 candidates notified of status
yP / 1 1 r / , J 1
I" - - B \ ' if 111 ilrfflp
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
QUESTIONS?
View RA Selection website at http://housing.unc.edu/raselection beginning November 5
or contact the Selection Committee at raselection@unc.edu or call (919) 343-27fi>3/2
PRICE
FROM PAGE 3
Batchelor, sporting a dark gray suit
and a “Bush-Cheney ’O4” sticker.
“I’m disappointed that I lost to a
very tough competitor,” he said. “I
was a little surprised that the num
bers were not a little bigger because
of the size of the volunteer staff and
the amount of time I put into it.”
As Republican supporters
cheered the latest poll results, he
said he is looking forward to spend
ing more time with his wife but does
not plan to withdraw from politics.
Batchelor called Price a little
after 11 p.m. to congratulate him.
He later commented that he was
impressed with the clean cam
paign run on both sides.
Decked in red, his wife, Suzanne,
said that despite the commitment
KINNAIRD
FROM PAGE 3
representative for areas outside of
Chapel Hill and Carrboro.
“Regardless of (what goes on
there) it’s going to translate into
her being a very effective legisla
tor for Person.”
Kinnaird bounced between
three locations Tuesday night.
After a quick stop at Top of the
Hill, she had dinner at Carrboro’s
Acme Restaurant with friends mid
campaign workers.
She pointed out her favorite
venues and suggested improve
ments while walking around her
hometown of Carrboro, where
she was mayor from 1987 to 1996.
Kinnaird was later visited by Kevin
Foy, mayor of Chapel Hill.
Her last stop was University
Mall’s Spice Street, where vol
unteers for the Orange County
Democratic Party were gathered.
Party chairman Barry Katz knew
of Guilford County.
Co-speakers led the state House
for the past two years in part
because Republicans couldn’t unite
behind one leader. Now it appears
Democrats could gain a major
ity, winning or holding a lead in
between 62 and 64 of 120 seats.
Co-Speaker Jim Black, D-
Mecklenburg, declined to discuss
whether he will return in January
as the sole speaker of the House.
“I have good solid support in my
caucus, but I don’t dare get out in
front of them,” Black said.
Ulljp Soilij (Tor Mrel
required in such a major race, it
was worth it.
“It was stressful, but all of the
people we’ve met... contacts and
volunteers, that has made it worth
it,” she said.
Donning a Bush-Cheney hat
and covered in campaign stickers,
campaign volunteer Ed Stiles said
working for Batchelor was reward
ing and encouraging.
He added that if Batchelor were
to run again for any office, he
would be there in a heartbeat.
“That man was fighting an
uphill battle from the beginning.
... But the way he just pressed on
... it is just totally awe-inspiring to
me* and I found a great friend in
Todd because of it.”
Contact the State Es? National
Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
Kinnaird’s devotion to Carrboro
and was pleasantly surprised to
see her in Chapel Hill.
“The Carrboro people have their
own party going on, but she’s here.
I love it,” he said. “That says some
thing.”
Whitfield spent the evening vis
iting several Orange County pre
cincts, and waited for the day’s tal
lies at Orange County Republican
headquarters. He said his plan if
he won was to shake a few hands
and wait on the rest of the results.
After conceding his defeat,
Whitfield did not dismiss the idea
of running again. “It is an option,”
he said.
But he added that it is not nec
essarily a priority in his life.
“I am 57 years old. It is not a
career goal for me,” he said. “I ran
because I was giving an option to
voters.”
Contact the State & National
Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
Ellis, a six-term lawmaker
and thorn in the side of Richard
Morgan, the Republican who
served as co-speaker with Black
for the last two years, lost to for
mer Wake County Commissioner
Linda Coleman. Coleman had 54
percent to 46 percent for Ellis,
with all precincts reporting.
Senate leader Marc Basnight,
D-Dare, who also won re-election,
said he expected a net gain of one
or two seats in his chamber, giving
the Democrats 28 or 29 of the 50
senators.