More Democratic Hopes for the NC Senate

We posted yesterday about five Democratic candidates who could break the Republican super-majority (down-column) and who are running in districts considered either competitive or "lean Democratic."

Below are videos by some Democrats running in NC Senate districts rated "lean Republican" and "strong Republican," and several of them have already made a reputation as stars in the 2018 Democratic crown. Can they win? Yes. Especially in a year like 2018 has proven to be.

What's Happening in Union County?

Where is Union County?
Below Charlotte-Mecklenburg, on the South Carolina line. It's historically Jesse Helms country with the towns of Monroe and Wingate. But a portion of Union could also be considered suburban Charlotte, as it lies just south of the I-485 belt line.

Democrats in Union County are organized this year and energized. Couldn't help noticing how Union stands out among the 100 counties for current direct-voter contact. They're doing more door-knocking and phone calling than our larger Democratic strongholds in Wake and Mecklenburg. Which means they're supporting the wave that could roll all the way to Raleigh (not to mention DeeCee).

Union's Star Candidates in 2018
Dan McCready, running for the 9th Congressional seat. We've written about McCready several times, and he's attracting national support. Whether the map for the 9th is going to survive current legal action is another question, but at the moment McCready looks like a winner in a flippable district (which used to be Robert Pittenger's. He was involuntarily retired in the May Republican primary).

Caroline Walker, running for the state Senate (District 35). We first noticed Walker back in February. For a year like 2018, she's got it all ... a compelling resume in both business and education, an exemplary personal life that speaks to the struggles and rewards of many ordinary Union Countians, and an inspirational vision of helping rather than hurting her fellow citizens.

No one that I know of lists Senate District 35 as "in play," but Walker is running for an open seat (a plus), she's showing canny instincts as a candidate (check out her Twitter feed), and she's obviously got an energized Democratic Party behind her.

Senator Jeff Jackson of the nearby 37th District has been raising money across the state to help flip the NC Senate -- or at least break the Republican super-majority -- and I certainly hope that some of that money goes to support Caroline Walker. Her bravery and resolve are an inspiration in a year rich with inspirational first-candidate stories.

D'Oh! Forgot Rick Foulke
Also in Union County, Rick Foulke is running for the NC House District 68 seat. We first took note of him back on January 2nd of this year.

Like Ray Russell, Foulke was until recently an Unaffiliated voter. He was a doctor in the Army before retiring as a lieutenant colonel and going into private practice as an oncologist, first in Charlotte and then in Matthews. He decided to register as a Democrat after the Republicans refused to expand Medicaid. Those and other Republican policies "got me off the sidelines and persuaded me that I really need to be in this fight," Foulke said. “I spent my career diagnosing people with cancer, telling them I can save their lives but see them die because they couldn’t afford the treatment,” Foulke said. “That’s why I’m running.”

Another Strong Democratic Woman Running for NC Senate

Caroline Walker, running in the NC Senate District 35

District 35 is Union County, including the towns of Monroe, Waxhaw, Wingate, and Marshville.

Incumbent Republican: Open seat. The seat is currently occupied by Republican Tommy Tucker, who announced his retirement last year. Tucker was a 2010 tea partier and held the seat with no Democratic opposition in 2012 and 2014. He faced a Democrat in the election of 2016 but beat him with over 61% of the vote. Republican Todd Johnson, president of Johnson Insurance Management and currently a Union County commissioner, has announced his candidacy as a Christian conservative. Johnson ran

Caroline, Sean, Julianna, and Sean Douglas

against Robert Pittenger in the 9th Congressional District Republican primary in 2016 and made a credible showing with 30% of the vote. Pittenger won that primary with 35%.

Democrat Caroline Walker moved with her family -- husband Sean and their children, Julianna and Sean Douglas -- to Union County in 2002 where she completed her Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. During college, she worked for the public school system as an after-school teacher and volunteered her time to numerous nonprofit and community organizations. After working for several years in sales and marketing for a residential home builder, Caroline suffered the economic downturn and struggled to make ends meet before starting her own business, an early childhood education center that has by now provided hundreds of children with a strong early education. In 2014 she joined an international firm as a workforce development consultant, working with large state and local government entities across the east coast. She is currently a State Account Manager and works with agencies to utilize location to improve efficiency and transparency in government. But what most animates her run for office is her concern for the future and for her two biracial children. She writes on Crowdpac: "It feels important to me that I sit and write about why I am running on today of all days. I am writing this on January 15th, 2018, the day we honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ... While I have been increasingly active in politics over the past decade, I had not envisioned until recently that I may one day seek the honor of becoming a public servant myself. However, with recent events, that vision has changed. I feel compelled to take a larger part in creating the type of community and world that I want for my children .... I look into the eyes of my two beautiful biracial children every day and I want to be able to tell them that they have the whole world and every opportunity within their reach. Where we are at today, I cannot honestly do that. That starts with great school systems where every child has equal opportunities and receives a quality education from supported and well-paid teachers. That means community and economic development and improved infrastructure that is responsible, sustainable and protects our natural resources. That means everyone having access to healthcare, addiction services, medications and patient education. That means a living wage, jobs, and growth that allow for upward mobility and for all to prosper rather than just scrape by. That means equality, justice, a voice and a vote for every single citizen regardless of their skin, gender, sexual orientation, political affiliation, age, economic status, disability, religion or origin. Above all, that means that I can look at my children every day and speak of America’s greatness, about liberty, opportunity, equality, justice, inclusion, dignity and rights while knowing that those words that I speak are the truth."