What's Behind the NC DemSenate Primary in Asheville?

 

Julie Mayfield

I paid much attention to Julie Mayfield in 2019. She was one of the Democrats who was running for Terry Van Duyn's NC Senate seat (SD49). Van Duyn was leaving to run for lieutenant governor in the 2020 Democratic primary. Mayfield, a noted environmental activist (MountainTrue) and Asheville City Council member, had amassed a legacy of community organizing and eleemosynary defense of the defenseless, so she won the 2020 primary and subsequently easily sailed to election to the NC Senate. SD49 leans heavily Democratic (61.4% Democrat, according to Dave's Redistricting; D+8 according to NC FREE), so whoever wins this primary likely takes the seat. The District takes in half of Buncombe County, the half with Asheville.

So what's up with Julie Mayfield's first term that she's drawn not one but two primary challengers, two women, one young and white, Taylon Breeden; the other Black and a newly elected Asheville city councilwoman, Sandra Kilgore, who takes a surprising position on the removal of the city's memorial to white supremacist Zebulon Baird Vance. But why kick out Mayfield? Because of a particular vote? An unpopular position? No tea or coffee for visitors in her outer office?

I profiled Mayfield in June 2019: "[She] got her law degree from Emory University in 1996, which apparently fueled an inherent gene for pro bono and public good advocacy. She directed the Turner Environmental Law Clinic at Emory University School of Law where she represented environmental groups, civic associations, and individuals in public interest environmental law cases. From 2003 to early 2008, she was Vice President and General Counsel for the Georgia Conservancy. She arrived in Asheville in 2008 and by 2011 she was appointed by Governor Bev Perdue to the Mountain Resources Commission, where she served until the legislature dissolved the Commission in 2013. She also served on the North Carolina Conservation Network board for six years, chairing it for two."

Hell, she even prides herself on being a "non-theist."

In trying to understand the undercurrents behind this primary, I stumbled on a truly revelatory Facebook livestream of a joint appearance/interview with Lauren Stein. It's archived on YouTube as "NC Senate 49 Forum," and it was well worth its long running time (even though for the first 20 minutes, it's a comedy of errors as Julie Mayfield attempts to conquer the technology and join the livestream. When she finally gets on, however, she brings clarity, informed common sense, and further confirmation that she's waaay qualified to be representing Buncombe in Raleigh).

Taylon Breeden

Taylon Breeden is obviously Mayfield's chief rival in this election. She's a champion for the working class and one sharp tack. She began to remind me of AOC for her charm mixed liberally with progressive grit and a bracing bluntness. I'd describe her as a left populist, and there's nothing muffled about her vision of what's gone wrong for working people. I found her compellingly informed on the details of legislation, particularly the legalization of hemp farming. She owns a hemp extraction lab and company, Simply Extract, which produces CBD oil. She recently opened a new business in downtown Asheville, The Pot Stirred, which features beverages infused with CBD and mushrooms — categorized as Buzzed Brews and Herbal Potions -- and a rotating menu of CBD and Stay Glazed Donuts. But don't let that joking airiness about the devil herb mislead you. There's nothing joking nor airy about her policy sharpness and determination to shake things up.

Breeden's most aggressive challenge to Mayfield involves "transparency" in that she has alleged that Mayfield, along with many other Democrats in Raleigh, have let themselves get stuck in Duke Energy's "back pocket," a charge that Mayfield vigorously defended (and I believe her). Like the Bernie bros I have known, Breeden has no use for "incrementalism," working for the small things you can get when you're in the vast minority as Democrats are in the General Assembly. But Mayfield has shown herself capable, particularly in being one of four Democrats who helped negotiate and make better the governor's landmark Clean Energy Plan, which he signed last October, the first such law passed by a majority Republican legislature in the South.

Sandra Kilgore

Somewhat outclassed and out-gunned in the "NC Senate 49 Forum" was Sandra Kilgore. Forum host Lauren Stein (who's as well informed, as blunt in her questioning as you could hope any national broadcaster might be -- but usually isn't) asked Kilgore what she was doing running for higher office barely a year into her first term on the Asheville City Council, a question Kilgore wasn't ready for. While Mayfield and Breeden were armed with facts and details, Kilgore waded safely in the shallow water of vague generalities (often "glittering").

The one thing that stands out about Kilgore was her opposition to the removal of the Vance obelisk from Pack Square. She wanted it "repurposed" rather than torn down, since it copies what was actually an ancient Egyptian symbol of the 
sun god Ra. Kilgore wrote on mountainx.com, "That makes the architectural form 13,000 years old. It symbolized the concept of duality and balance. Obelisks are thought to represent good energy and dispel negative forces."

Asheville’s obelisk itself does not represent the Confederacy. Many of the Confederate statues removed thus far were made in the image of Confederate soldiers, not stand-alone obelisks. Asheville is known to be a city of the arts, and the monument represents one of Asheville’s oldest art structures in downtown Asheville.

The Vance obelisk was designed by Richard Sharp Smith, the supervising architect of the Biltmore House, and was modeled on the Washington Monument, and to Kilgore (to me too) worth saving as an Asheville landmark with no visible connection to white supremacy (like a bronze Confederate soldier gripping a gun). Kilgore evidently felt that the fury about white supremacy after the killing of George Floyd divided her community unnecessarily, and she observed that white elites were often the source of telling the Black community how it ought to feel about the monument.

Kilgore's position is perhaps too nuanced and sophisticated for many liberals, but I was both surprised and enlightened by her taking that stand. She's a poised presence, and though she seemed out of her depth in the forum, her cosmopolitan vibe comes from a career as an international traveler, a flight attendant for British Airways. It's hard to rattle an experienced flight attendant. Since returning to Asheville (where she grew up) to take care of aging parents, she's opened her own real estate business catering especially to the Black community.

Mayfield can win this primary, though Breeden is going to have a following, and whatever happens, I believe Asheville is well stocked with coming powerful political women. Breeden and Kilgore both have much to offer, and I could hope that they'll stay leaders in the community. Anyway, after watching Lauren Stein's Facebook forum, Asheville seems even luckier to me for its abundance of intellectual talent. 

The Elections of March: This "Safe" Democratic Seat in Buncombe Will Likely Be Decided in the Primary

NC Senate District 49 -- Buncombe County

Incumbent Democrat Terry Van Duyn is stepping down to run in the March primary for lieutenant governor. The most recent redistricting reduced Republican voting strength in District 49 even more than it was already, so it's rated "Likely Democratic." The primary between three Democratic contenders will likely decide who ultimately takes the seat, though there is a Republican in the race (see below).

Democrat Julie Mayfield might justifiably take the honors of "frontrunner." She declared her candidacy almost a year ago -- last March. She's a 53-year-old Gen-X-er born in 1967 and since 2015 a member of the Asheville City Council and one of the foremost leaders of MountainTrue, an environmental advocacy nonprofit. She helped co-found MountainTrue in 2015, the same year she made it to the city council. MountainTrue was a merger of environmental advocacy groups in Henderson, Jackson, and Macon counties and has become the official home for both the French Broad Riverkeeper and the Watauga Riverkeeper.

Julie Mayfield got her law degree from Emory University in 1996, which apparently fueled an inherent gene for pro bono and public good advocacy. She directed the Turner Environmental Law Clinic at Emory University School of Law where she represented environmental groups, civic associations, and individuals in public interest environmental law cases. From 2003 to early 2008, she was Vice President and General Counsel for the Georgia Conservancy. She arrived in Asheville in 2008 and by 2011 she was appointed by Governor Bev Perdue to the Mountain Resources Commission, where she served until the legislature dissolved the Commission in 2013. She also served on the North Carolina Conservation Network board for six years, chairing it for two.

On the Asheville City Council, she's pushed a new program for down-payment assistance for prospective homeowners and she's shown a commendible curiosity about how the Tourism Development Authority spends tourism tax revenues. Prior to MountainTrue, Mayfield worked for Amnesty International USA and for the Atlanta Community Food Bank and for the Georgia Justice Project. She advocated for people caught up sometimes in a meat-grinder of law enforcement, which accounts for Mayfield's active participation in rewriting the use-of-force rules for the Asheville City Police, a policy-rewrite that Mayfield says has led to a 61% reduction in use-of-force incidents.

She's been endorsed, incidentally, by Terry Van Duyn.

Democrat Travis Smith is a 36-year-old millennial who was born in Canada, immigrated here 11 years ago, and presumably became a citizen, but I can find no evidence that he's ever voted in any election including in the 2016 presidential year when he said he phonebanked for Bernie Sanders. He works as an IT consultant for Salesforce.com.

Here's his introductory video message:

Democrat Ben Scales is a 55-year-old baby boomer born in 1964. He also announced his candidacy in March of 2019. Like Mayfield, Scales is also a lawyer and has run unsuccessfully twice for Buncombe district attorney, once as an unaffiliated candidate. Scales came out early for the legalization of marijuana and staked out other progressive positions: "Health care is a right, climate change needs rapid solutions now, education is for everyone, gender is a spectrum, immigrants are welcome, domestic violence won’t be tolerated, women are equal, agriculture and innovation is vital, elections should be fair and voter registration automatic, the cash bail system, mass incarceration and the war on drugs must end."

He says that "As an attorney, he has represented the underrepresented, often pro bono, such as protestors and activists associated with Occupy Asheville, Asheville Black Lives Matter, Southerners On New Ground, and Veterans for Peace." He's been particularly active as an attorney for victims of domestic violence. He's a do-gooder in the venerable Democratic tradition and apparently a pretty decent guitarist.

Republican Bob Penland is a 77-year-old resident of Candler, NC, who was born in 1942 at the tail-end of the Silent Generation. He has no campaign infrastructure whatsoever that we can find, and hence no accessible biography.

Four Women To Watch in North Carolina in 2020

This announcement appeared on Twitter yesterday:

Lillian's List candidates in North Carolina get significant financial support and a boost from a network of activists and opinion-shapers across the state.

I've written here about Leslie Cohen back in July, because she's running again in 2020 in the House district currently occupied by Republican Holly Grange, who at the time of that writing was only considering a campaign for the Republican nomination for governor. Grange is now in that race against Dan Forest, leaving her House District 20 in Wilmington an open seat. Cohen has an excellent shot at that.

I wrote about Julie Mayfield in June. She had announced for the Senate District 49 that is being left open by incumbent Democrat Terry Van Duyn's decision to seek election as lieutenant governor. Mayfield has the makings of a Democratic star. She's currently serving on the Asheville City Council and is an environmental lawyer deeply invested in MountainTrue, an advocacy group that stretches through several North Carolina mountain counties.

Jessica Holmes is new to me. She's running for Labor Commissioner, a seat being left open by the retirement of Republican Cheri Berry. Holmes is well qualified to take on that department. She was a first generation college student who graduated from UNC's law school and became a labor and employment law attorney. She was elected to the Wake County Commission in 2014 as the youngest member ever and is now serving in her second term. After reelection she was chosen by her fellow commissioners as chair of the county commission. You can read much more about her accomplishments on her website.

Christine Kushner is also new to me, although I inadvertently stumbled onto her when I wrote encouraging Mack Paul, the almost-successful Democratic candidate in 2018 for the NC Senate District 18, to try again in 2020. What I didn't know at the time, but quickly found out, was that Mack Paul was endorsing Christine Kushner for that seat and an old friend of ours was running her campaign. Kushner has been a popular member of the Wake County Board of Education since 2011. She was a Moorhead Scholar at Chapel Hill, graduating with a degree in journalism (which she pursued professionally for a while) and political science. She went on to earn a master's degree at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton and has spent many years working and advising on health care policy, grants management, and public health programs throughout North Carolina. Her website.

Good first crop of Lillian List endorsees -- accomplished and strong women with every prospect of helping make 2020 a Blue Wave.

A Strong Contender for the NC Senate

NC Senator Terry Van Duyn is not running again in 2020 for her Senate seat (District 49) because she's running for Lieutenant Governor. District 49 is considered "strong Democratic." It covers all but the southernmost portion of Buncombe County and most of Asheville. It's a prime opportunity for the right Democrat to join the circus in Raleigh. So you can expect a rush of contenders.

The right Democrat may well be Julie Mayfield, since 2015 a member of the Asheville City Council and one of the foremost leaders of MountainTrue, an environmental advocacy nonprofit. She helped co-found MountainTrue in 2015, the same year she made it to the City Council. MountainTrue was a merger of environmental advocacy groups in Henderson, Jackson, and Macon counties and has become the official home for both the French Broad Riverkeeper and the Watauga Riverkeeper.

Julie Mayfield got her law degree from Emory University in 1996, which apparently fueled an inherent gene for pro bono and public good advocacy. She directed the Turner Environmental Law Clinic at Emory University School of Law where she represented environmental groups, civic associations, and individuals in public interest environmental law cases. From 2003 to early 2008, she was Vice President and General Counsel for the Georgia Conservancy. She arrived in Asheville in 2008 and by 2011 she was appointed by Governor Bev Perdue to the Mountain Resources Commission, where she served until the legislature dissolved the Commission in 2013. She also served on the North Carolina Conservation Network board for six years, chairing it for two.

Most recently, MountainTrue came out strong against the petition by the Town of Beech Mountain to the Army Corps of Engineers to be allowed to hoard more water from Beech Creek: "Instead of fixing their leaky water pipes, the Town of Beech Mountain is trying to get the Army Corps of Engineers to change the permit that determines how much water it is required to release from its Buckeye Reservoir to support stream life downstream in Beech Creek." Bad municipal infrastructure shouldn't take it out on Mother Nature.

MountainTrue looks financially healthy. It's now offering grants to "kids, teens and families" all over the mountain region who'll be actively engaged in "policy and project advocacy, outreach, and education, and on the ground projects." It intends to feed the grassroots of environmental activism and make a difference. I take that as the stamp of Julie Mayfield's character.

On the Asheville City Council, she's pushed a new program for down-payment assistance for prospective homeowners and she's shown a commendible curiosity about how the Tourism Development Authority spends tourism tax revenues.

From the article about her announcement of candidacy in March of this year: Prior to MountainTrue, Mayfield worked for Amnesty International USA and for the Atlanta Community Food Bank and for the Georgia Justice Project. She advocated for people caught up sometimes in a meat-grinder of law enforcement, which accounts for Mayfield's active participation in rewriting the use-of-force rules for the Asheville City Police, a policy-rewrite that Mayfield says has led to a 61% reduction in use-of-force incidents.


Mayfield Not the Only Democrat Already Running

Ben Scales beat Mayfield's announcement last March by a single day. Scales is also a lawyer and has run unsuccessfully twice for Buncombe district attorney, once as an unaffiliated candidate. Scales came out immediately for the legalization of marijuana and staked out other progressive positions:

"Health care is a right, climate change needs rapid solutions now, education is for everyone, gender is a spectrum, immigrants are welcome, domestic violence won’t be tolerated, women are equal, agriculture and innovation is vital, elections should be fair and voter registration automatic, the cash bail system, mass incarceration and the war on drugs must end."

Remember the late March scandal when the wife of the youngest member of the NC General Assembly from Transylvania County had to take out a protective order against her abusive husband? Ben Scales was the lawyer who helped the wife win that protective order.