Bev Perdue announced today that she would not be running again for Governor. This was surprising to many, but considering the scandals that are surrounding all around her and her lackluster polling against McCrory, it isn’t unbelievable. The big question now is who will step in to run in her stead. Someone like Erskine Bowles would certainly be a formidable candidate, even though it is becoming the eleventh hour at this point. This is surely good news for the McCrory camp overall, but they have been doing opposition research on Bev for years which is now useless. Now they must sit and wait to see who steps up. There is no question that Democrats nationally will have a say in who steps in considering the emphasis on this state as well as the Democrat National Convention being held here. However, today is a good day for the McCrory camp, and many will be curiously watching to see who the Dems put forth as their new gubernatorial candidate.

This coming year Charlotte, North Carolina will be at the epicenter of the political world. The Democratic National Convention is being held in Charlotte September 3-7, so all of the party figureheads will be out in full force. It is no coincidence that the DNC chose Charlotte as the city to hold their convention. North Carolina went Democratic in the last Presidential election, and the Democrats want to keep it that way. It will be interesting to see the outcome of the DNC on elections in Charlotte and throughout the rest of the state. The upcoming gubernatorial contest between Bev Perdue and Pat McCrory will have many people around the country watching. The energy and momentum certainly see to be with McCrory at this point, but many things will occur between now and next November. McCrory recently reported raising 1.5 million in the second half of 2011 which means more than 2.5 million for last year. This is a considerable amount of money considering what he raised in 08. This strong fundraising coupled with Bev’s recent issues of campaign and administration staffers running into legal trouble spell out a good start for Pat. Anyone who follows North Carolina politics know that Pat is still in for an uphill battle being a Republican attempting election statewide. However, Bev’s accomplishments while in office have been meager at best, and there continues to be a veil of corruption cast over the Democrats running Raleigh. Presidential politics always has a significant impact on state elections, so it will be interesting to see how that will play out in the gubernatorial race here next November.

Yesterday brought charges against several people that are closely tied to N.C. Governor Bev Perdue. Grand jurors handed up indictments in state court against former Perdue campaign finance director Peter Reichard of Greensboro; Juleigh Sitton of Morganton, until recently the director of the governor’s Western Office in Asheville; and Trawick H. “Buzzy” Stubbs Jr. of New Bern, a former law partner with Perdue’s late first husband. Stubbs and Sitton were charged with filing false campaign reports and obstruction of justice while Reichard was charged with one count of obstruction of justice. This does not comes as a surprise to many that follow state politics in North Carolina as there are a litany of illegal dealings that have been going on in Raleigh for quite some time. Although Bev will no doubt distance herself from these individuals, it is likely that she had to know some of what was going on. Bev replaced longtime friend and political mentor Mike Easley, who left office in 2008 after an administration that was riddled with corruption. Bev seems to be simply keeping the tradition.

There is no doubt that the Democrats have staked their flag in North Carolina for the 2012 election.  Choosing Charlotte to host the Democratic National Convention was a long thought out strategic move, and the powers that be are trying to use North Carolina to break the back of the once solidly red voting South.

Many North Carolinians are worried about their house being foreclosed on, and Governor Bev Perdue is no exception.  Her Gubernatorial mansion may have a new occupant next year, but there is still much to play out.  Pat McCrory is the clear front- runner at this point, with the latest RealClearPolitics poll having him up over 8 points, but he still has some obstacles to overcome before he can move in to his new home in Raleigh.  A lot can change in 14 months, but Pat is certainly positioning himself well going into political season.

There are 3 main obstacles the former mayor still has to deal with in the coming months.  First, who will step up and challenge Pat McCrory for the Republican nomination.  It seems as if all of the big names statewide have bowed out at this point, but a Tea Party candidate may very well come out of the woodwork.  With the current momentum of the Tea Party coupled with North Carolina’s voting demographic, this candidate may catch some traction.  The last thing the McCrory camp wants to do is allocate its precious resources in fending off a primary challenger.  However, this will more than likely be no more than a straw candidate, and at this point Pat is certain to cruise through the primary.

Secondly, the Democratic National Convention is being held in Charlotte where Mr. McCrory was mayor for 14 years.  Choosing Charlotte to host the Democratic National Convention was a long thought out strategic move, and the powers to be are trying to use North Carolina to break the back of the once solidly red voting South.   Bev received a significant boost in ’08 from Obama, but it is likely to be far less in ’12.  Also, her oratory skills are quite lacking, and she would do herself a favor by keeping her message sweet and simple.

The last obstacle Pat has to overcome is the stigma attached to being a Charlotte politician.  Since the 1980’s, 4 different Charlotte mayors have made unsuccessful bids for statewide election.  Pat likes to dodge this issue saying that it only becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy which the media needs to stop dwelling on.  However this doesn’t change the fact of the matter, and there are legitimate reasons for people raising this question.  Many North Carolinians on the Eastern and Western parts of the state view Charlotte as its own state within a state, and they are wary of politicians cropping up out of Charlotte.  Although Pat has a personal and political dynamic that makes him widely appealing, he still must find a way to convince people from both sides of the aisle that he is up to the job.

All in all, the North Carolina election may be a good barometer for things nationally.  The state went for Obama in ‘08, but this is no indicator as to what will occur in ’12.   The state is full of conservative businessmen, left-leaning academics, subsidy receiving farmers, and newly moved migrators from all parts of the country, so there are many types of voters concerned with an array of issues.  The Democrats have assessed these state wide demographics and decided that there is a play.  It will certainly be entertaining to watch this play unfold here in North Carolina, although let’s hope this time Barack keeps the cheesy blow-up background facades at home this go-round.