Black Democrats CAMPAIGN
lament tough election EaL*
BY CASH MICHAELS
FOR THE CHRONICLE
Most Democrats agree tjiat the damage they suffered
nationally and statewide after the 2016 general election
cannot f>e underestimated. For black Democrats in North
Carolina and Forsyth County, beyond the decisive vic
tory of Wake Superior Court Judge Mike Morgan for the
state Supreme Court, and Lynne Johnson, the first
African-American elected as county Register of Deeds,
there is particular consternation.
With the 2018 congressional midterm elections the
next electoral challenge, black Democrats say the lessons
learned from the party's poor showing should not be
ignored.
"I'm just tragically disappointed," a somber Eric
Ellison, chairman of the Forsyth County Democratic
Party, told The Chronicle Friday regarding the defeat of
Hillary Clinton by Republican Donald Trump for presi
dent.
On the bright side. Ellison did proudly tout the appar
ent 5,000-vote victory of state Attorney General Roy
Cooper over incumbent Republican Gov. Pat McCrory in
unofficial results, noting that Forsyth County Democrats
worked for months in their get-out-the-vote efforts to also
bring about victories for Justice-elect Morgan and
Register of Deeds leader Johnson.
"Look at the numbers - Forsyth County did exception
?ally well," Ellison insists, noting how Cooper led all
Democrats in the county as a top vote getter "The story of
[Justice-elect] Mike Morgan is huge. We have control of
the Executive Branch, we have control of the Judicial
Branch."
Though many political observers charge that
Democrats largely fumbled their message and didn't hear
the true hurt and pain of average Americans, leading to
substantial losses, Ellison disagrees.
"Democrats have policies for the working class, the
middle-class, the working poor ... I don't think that's a
problem, and I don't think this was a policy election,"
Ellison says, noting that a questionably qualified Trump
beat out an exceptionally qualified Hillary Clinton by
racially appealing.to people's fears.
"They're going to get what they asked, and they're
going to see that there are horrible consequences when
they elect somebody who is unqualified, incompetent, and
has never even read the [U.S.] Constitution a day in his
life," Ellison charged.
Although most Democrats agree on what the negative
prospects of the Trump presidency could be, there are
those, like former school board candidate Chenita Barber
Johnson, who believe a combination of voter suppression
and party shortsightedness were key to crippling a greater
Democratic Party turnout.
"[The Democratic Party] did not shore up its most
loyal base, the African-American voter," Barber Johnson
told The Chronicle in a statement.. "Whiie most African
Americans at this point in history will not vote
Republican, they can and will stay at home and not vote
at all if it is perceived their interests are not included or if
they have felt unappreciated."
"The African-American vote did the best it could, but
not necessarily what it should have done," Barber Johnson
continued. "But considering the blatant voter suppression
in our state by our legislature and local boards of elec
tions, African- Americans had various barriers to voting
even until just prior to Early Vote with the court case in
Forsyth County by the NAACP. Other barriers were vot
ers purged from voter rolls, gerrymandered districts, early
voting days shortened across the country with some states
having only one site for each county.
"Even in Forsyth County we had one site opened [at
the Government Center] for the first week of early vbting,
and Anderson Center was a site the BOE refused to open
as an early vote site because it was on the campus of
WSSU."
Barber Johnson concludes that "it was unrealistic" to
expect African-Americans to turn out in the same num
bers as they did for President Obama in 2008 and 2012.
Johnson
Ellison
Barber demands Trump repent for
all evilness he spread during campaign
BY TEVIN STINSON
THE CHRONICLE
A few. days after ballots had
been counted, and it was official
that America had elected the first
president with no political expe
rience, thousands of protesters
took to the streets to voice their
frustrations.
While inhabitants across the
country marched, including in
Winston-Salem, N.C. NAACP
President Rev. Dr. William J.
Barber took a different approach
? to share his thoughts on the elec
tion and president-elect Donald
Trump.
During a conference call on
Friday, Nov. 11, Barber said
although Trump may be our next
president, those who believe in
democracy must remain resilient.
He said, "I know many peo
ple are frustrated and upset with
what transpired Tuesday night
and early Wednesday morning,
but now more than ever we must
lift our voices and sing."
While many were shocked by
the election results. Barber told
NAACP members and members
of the media that what occurred
early on Super Tuesday was all
too familiar.
"This is nothing we haven't
seen before," said Barber.
"We've had candidates and peo
ple in office before who struck
fear, and vulnerability into the
hearts of the weak, and Donald
Trump is no different."
Barber went on to say he
believes what propelled Trump to
the White House is the hate rhet
oric against people of color,
immigrants, women, and other
underrepresented sub cultures in
our society. He said that is exact
ly that type of language that
appeals to voters in the South.
He mentioned fear of change, and
the fact that the first African
American president is currently
in office also played a major role
in Trump's surprising victory.
"This could not have hap
pened without the election of the
first black president. While we
have made great strides to
improve race relations in this
country, many people could not
and still can't accept the fact that
the President of the United States
is a black man," said Barber. "A
dying mule kicks the hardest and
this was their redemption move
ment. This is extremist last gas to
prevent change."
UtlUIt 11V
is sworn in as
the 45th
President of
the United
States, Barber
demanded that
Trump take
back the hate
ful language that fueled his cam
paign. He said now is the time for
Trump to change his ways and be
statesman.
"He has to repent from all the
evilness that he has spread across
this country," he said. "We don't
need someone in office who will
just.go along to get along. Now is
the time to be a statesman for the
entire country."
While much of the news was
n't good for Democrats last
week. Barber says with the help
of Democracy NC, the NAACP
led more than 60 marches to the
polls across the state and regis
tered more than 20,000 new vot
ers this election season.
When discussing the future,
Barber said, "Now more than
ever we have to keep the faith.
"Just like the slaves who took
a stand. Just like Harriet Tubman,
Dr. King and others before us, we
have that same faith and that's
what Will get us through these
treacherous times," he said. "We
must remember that we are heirs
of great descendants and we must
continue on our journey for
equality."
High Win
from page A1 ~
was key because, in order
to gain partisan advantage,
GOP lawmakers deter
mined that Republican can
didates would be listed first
in each partisan contest.
With straight ticket bal
loting eliminated, all
Republicans had to do was
simply vote for the first
name in every category on
the ballot. But for some
reason, Judge Morgan's
name, not Justice
Edmunds', was listed first
in the non-partisan
Supreme Court race, which
may have caused some
confusion with Republican
voters not familiar with
either candidate, resulting
in the over 300,000-vote
win for Morgan, some ana
lysts, who called it "a mis
take," believe.
Justice-elect Morgan
disagrees, calling that" just
speculation." Morgan
noted that he ran on his
almost 30, years in the judi
ciary serving at every level,
including as a trial judge,
something Justice
Edmunds couldn't claim.
Morgan campaigned "vig
orously" in every part of
the state and established
"personal contact with the
voters."
Morgan also credits his
campaign team for great
organizing and establishing
a good, "strong" social
media presence.
"I had a message that
was embraced by the vot
ers, and that is that the state
Supreme Court needs to be
fair, impartial, above
reproach, and clear of any
politics. So to speculate
and say that the lack of des
ignation of Democrat and
Republican, is not only
sheer speculation, but also
sour grapes."
Justice Edmunds also
found himself targeted by
an outside progressive spe
cial interest group in a cam
paign television commer
cial called "the snake ad,"
for writing the lead opinion
upholding the Republican
led state legislature's 2011
redistricting map that was
later ruled unconstitutional
by a panel of three-federal
District Court judges last
August for creating con
gressional voting districts
by race.
Edmunds wrote that
overturned 4-3 opinion, but
maintained that the cam
paign ad suggesting that he
was somehow racist
because he did, was unfair.
In the aftermath of
Justice-elect Morgan's
election victory came
reports that Republican
legislative leadership, in a
move to counter a
Democratic Gov. Roy
Cooper, is considering off
setting what would be a 4-3
Democrat majority on the
state Supreme Court with
Morgan's addition, by
appointing two additional,
presumably Republican
associate justices during
the special session Gov.
McCrory is planning to call
for Hurricane Matthew dis
aster relief.
The state constitution
allows for a total of nine
justices to serve, which
includes the chief justice.
The Charlotte Observer
called the alleged
Republican plot "blatantly
offensive." Many activists,
including N.C. ,NAACP
President Rev. William
Barber, are blasting the
idea as a "power grab."
"This is wrong because
it is a form of partisan
scheming designed to go
around the people, and a
vote of the people," Rev.
Barber says. "This also vio
lates the fundamental con
cept of separation of pow
ers when a partisan-elected
governor and legislature
seeks to stack the judicial
body, a totally separate part
of government, for partisan
control. We will fight and
stand against this immoral
and unconstitutional power
grab as should all North
Carolinians."
Justice-elect Morgan
also wasn't pleased.
"The concern is, in
light of the fact that the vot
ers have stated by their
votes Tuesday that they
reject the politicization of
our North Carolina
Supreme Court, [they] do
not want the justices to
have any political leanings,
and the voters want to
make sure that our highest
court is perceived as being
fair and impartial in every
decision," Morgan said. "I
cannot comment on the
pending or impending
actions of the legislature,
but I will say it causes me
some concern in light of
the most recent election
results."
When told that many in
North Carolina's African
American community are
proud of his election to the
state's High Court, Justice
elect Morgan said he was
proud to be the first
African-American to be
elected to the state
Supreme Court without
first being appointed by a
governor. Morgan added '
that he is now the only
African-American male on
the High Court (Associate '
Justice Cheri Beasley is
currently the only black
female on the court).
Justice-elect Morgan
added that his election now
means, not only for
African-Americans, but for
all citizens of North
Carolina "the strengthening
of the [state Supremd
Court] through diversity."
Justice-elect Mike
Morgan will be sworn into
office in January 2017.
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