Candidate Forums, TV Replays Set
Article Date: Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Written By: Russell Rawlings
The North Carolina Bar Association will sponsor candidate forums on Saturday, June 21, in conjunction with the 2008 Annual Meeting at the Sheraton Atlantic Beach Oceanfront Hotel. The forums will be conducted during the General Session, which begins at 8:30 a.m. and concludes at approximately 12:30 p.m.
Forums involving the Democratic and Republican candidates for the U.S. Senate and N.C. Governor will begin at approximately 10:45. Remarks from candidates seeking seats on the N.C. Supreme Court and the N.C. Court of Appeals will conclude the first half of the morning program and run from approximately 9:50-10:30.
The forums for the U.S. Senate and N.C. Governor will include a media panel consisting of Gerald Owens of WRAL-TV in Raleigh, Shannon Vickery of UNC-TV in Chapel Hill and Laura Leslie of N.C. Public Radio. NCBA Past-President Mike Colombo of Greenville will moderate the forums.
The forums will utilize identical schedules:
5-minute opening statements from both candidates
30 minutes of questions and answers
2-minute closing statements from both candidates
U.S. Senate candidates Elizabeth Dole and Kay Hagan will appear first at 10:45. Gubernatorial candidates Bev Perdue and Pat McCrory will follow at approximately 11:35.
The forums will be broadcast later in the weekend.
News 14 Carolina will air the forums on Sunday, June 22, during special editions of “Political Connections”; Gubernatorial Forum at 11 a.m., Senatorial Forum at 1 p.m., and both forums all next week via Carolina On Demand (Time Warner Cable channel 1234).
UNC-TV will broadcast the Gubernatorial Forum on Saturday, June 21, at 7 p.m.; the Senatorial Forum will air on Sunday, June 22, at 2 p.m.
The Candidates
U.S. Senate
Elizabeth Dole is the Republican Party’s nominee for U.S. Senate and is currently completing her first term. She became the first female from this state to be elected to the U.S. Senate in 2002. She served five U.S. presidents as Deputy Assistant for Consumer Affairs (1969-73), member of the Federal Trade Commission (1973-79), Assistant to President Reagan for Public Liaison (1981-83), Secretary of Transportation (1983-89) and Secretary of Labor (1989-91). She served from 1991-99 as president of the American Red Cross. A native of Salisbury, Dole graduated from Duke University and later earned a degree from Harvard Law School. She also holds a master’s degree in education and government from Harvard. She is married to former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole.
Kay Hagan is the Democratic Party’s nominee for the U.S. Senate. She is currently completing her fifth term as a member of the N.C. Senate. She has represented Greensboro and Guilford County since 1999, serving as co-chair of the Budget Committee during her last three terms. She served as Gov. Hunt’s Guilford County campaign manager in 1992 and 1996. Hagan worked for NationsBank (now Bank of America) from 1978-88. After her third child was born, she left to focus on being a full-time mom and remained active in her community. A native of Shelby, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Florida State University and law degree from the Wake Forest University School of Law, where she met her husband, Chip.
Governor
Bev Perdue is the Democratic Party’s nominee for governor. She is currently completing her second term as lieutenant governor after serving seven terms in the General Assembly, two in the House of Representatives and five in the Senate. She is the state’s first female lieutenant governor and seeks to become its first female governor. A native of Grundy, Va., and a longtime New Bern resident, she currently resides in Chapel Hill. She is married to Bob Eaves. A former public school teacher, Perdue also served as director of geriatrics at Craven County Medical Center. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Kentucky and a master’s degree in education and Ph.D. in administration from the University of Florida.
Pat McCrory is the Republican Party’s nominee for governor. He is currently serving a record seventh term as mayor of Charlotte, having first been elected in 1995. He previously served three terms as an at-large representative to the Charlotte City Council and held the position of mayor pro tem during his third term. Since September 2001, he has served on the Homeland Security Advisory Commission. An Ohio native, McCrory grew up in Jamestown in Guilford County. He is married to Ann Gordon McCrory. McCrory previously held various management positions with Duke Energy Corp. and most recently served as economic development consultant. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Catawba College and later received an honorary doctorate from his alma mater.
N.C. Supreme Court
Robert H. (Bob) Edmunds of Greensboro seeks re-election to the N.C. Supreme Court where he has served since 2001. He received his J.D. from the UNC School of Law in 1975 and earned an LL.M. from the University of Virginia in 2004. He previously served on the N.C. Court of Appeals and as a U.S. Attorney, assistant U.S. Attorney, assistant district attorney and general practitioner.
Suzanne Reynolds of Winston-Salem seeks the Edmunds seat on the N.C. Supreme Court. She has served on the faculty of the Wake Forest University School of Law since 1981 as an assistant professor, associate professor (1986-89) and professor (1989-present). She received her J.D. from Wake Forest in 1977 and earned a master’s degree from UNC. She also practiced civil litigation in Greensboro.
N.C. Court of Appeals
Chief Judge John C. Martin is unopposed for re-election to the N.C. Court of Appeals, where he has served as chief judge since 2004 and as a member of the court from 1985-88 and 1993-present. A former Superior Court judge and practicing attorney, he earned his J.D. from the Wake Forest University School of Law in 1967. Martin has chaired the N.C. Judicial Standards Commission since 2001. (In the essence of time, Judge Martin has graciously yielded his podium time to the other candidates and program participants.)
Tyson Seat
Sam J. Ervin IV of Morganton seeks the Tyson seat on the N.C. Court of Appeals. He has served on the N.C. Utilities Commission since 1999 and is currently in his second term. He previously was engaged in private practice in Morganton from 1981-99. He received his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1981.
Kristin Ruth of New Hill seeks the Tyson seat on the N.C. Court of Appeals. She is currently serving her third term as a District Court judge in Wake County. She engaged in private practice for seven years prior to joining the bench. She received her J.D. from the Campbell University School of Law in 1990.
McCullough Seat
Cheri Beasley of Fayetteville seeks the McCullough seat on the N.C. Court of Appeals. She is currently serving her third term as a District Court judge in Cumberland County, where she previously served as a public defender. She received her J.D. from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 1991.
Doug McCullough of Atlantic Beach seeks re-election to the N.C. Court of Appeals, where he has served since 2001. He previously engaged in private practice and served from 1981-96 in the U.S. Attorney’s Office (Eastern District N.C.) He received his J.D. from the University of South Carolina in 1970.
Wynn Seat
Jewel Ann Farlow of Gibsonville seeks the Wynn seat on the N.C. Court of Appeals. She is a sole practitioner who also provides free legal assistance to indigent citizens and canine rescue organizations. She earned her J.D. from the Wake Forest University School of Law in 1988.
Jim Wynn of Cary seeks re-election to the N.C. Court of Appeals, where he has served since 1998 and from 1990-98. He served on the N.C. Supreme Court in 1998. He received his J.D. from Marquette University in 1979 and LL.M. from the University of Virginia in 1995.
Stephens Seat
Linda Stephens of Raleigh seeks election to the N.C. Court of Appeals, where she has served since 2006. She practiced law from 1984-2006, preceded by five years as deputy commissioner of the N.C. Industrial Commission. She received her J.D. from the UNC School of Law in 1979.
Dan Barrett of Clemmons seeks the Stephens seat on the N.C. Court of Appeals. He has practiced law for 22 years throughout the state and is the author of North Carolina Employment Law. He received his J.D. from the Wake Forest University School of Law in 1985.
Arrowood Seat
John S. Arrowood of Charlotte seeks election to the N.C. Court of Appeals, where he has served since 2007. A member of the Court of Appeals staff from 1983-89, he engaged in private practice in Charlotte from 1989-2007. He received his J.D. from the UNC School of Law in 1982.
Robert N. (Bob) Hunter of Greensboro seeks the Arrowood seat on the N.C. Court of Appeals. He has engaged in private practice since 1975 and also serves as president and general counsel for New River Gorge Corp. He received his J.D. from the UNC School of Law in 1973.