Dependable Erection

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Durham elections - nearly final results

UPDATED:From the Durham Board of Elections, with about 98% of precincts reporting:

Diane Catotti . . . . . . . . . 7,228 20.22
Eugene A. Brown . . . . . . . . 5,945 16.63
Farad Ali . . . . . . . . . . 4,891 13.68
Laney Funderburk . . . . . . . . 3,750 10.49
David Harris . . . . . . . . . 3,376 9.44
Steve Monks. . . . . . . . . . 3,198 8.95
Victoria Peterson. . . . . . . . 2,678 7.49
Melodie Parrish . . . . . . . . 2,617 7.32
Joe Williams . . . . . . . . . 1,487 4.16
David Thompson, Jr. . . . . . . . 579 1.62
Total . . . . . . . . . 35,749





COMMENTARY: Biggest surprise for me is Steve Monks making the cut. I assume his base of support in the Republican Party would still be pissed at him for his write-in campaign for the DA's office last year, which essentially allowed Mike Nifong to retain his office with less than a majority vote.

more comments on the results later. i'll probably be at Kevin's place discussing things as well.

UPDATE: the gap between third and fourth place (1100 votes) is significantly greater than the gap between 4th and 6th (550 votes). Chaz over in the comments at Kevin's thinks that this result gives David Harris a chance to pick up votes in the general. I'm not so sure. We'll see if any endorsements change as a result of people dropping out of the race.

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posted by Barry at 8:05 PM Digg this

9 Comments:

  • Looking forward to your analysis. :)

    It's shaping up to be a tough race for that third slot in the general election, assuming Catotti and Brown are locks, which might be a lofty assumption to make...Funderburk and Monks will have more room on their red signs to look more like a ticket than a law firm as they did with Parrish squeezed in there, too.

    By Blogger toastie, at 8:39 PM  

  • Turnout for the general usually doubles over turnout for the primary, so it's certainly possible for the results to change significantly between now and November.

    that said, David Harris is going to have to work very hard to get up into the third position. With three Democrats, two Republicans, and one independent on the final ballot, there is room for the parties to demonstrate their respective strengths in Durham.

    The Durham Committee's endorsement did not seem to help Victoria Peterson. Let's see if they make any additional endorsements before the general.

    By Blogger Barry, at 9:01 PM  

  • The BOE results don't make sense. Why are they assigning percentages to the vote totals as if voters only chose one candidate per ballot? The overall total implies that 36,000 voters went to the polls, but it was really was just about a third of that... None of this changes the results, just nit-picking how these results are being reported by the BOE. I mean, to the casual observer, it would appear that no one enjoys widespread support, but Catotti really received support from about 60% of voters and Brown nearly 50%, as opposed to the 20% and 16% that the results might imply.

    By Blogger toastie, at 9:09 PM  

  • It's going to be interesting for sure -- the Durham Committee will be put in the position of advocating for one black candidate (Ali) while trying to convince black voters not to vote for anther well-liked black candidate (Harris). I have no doubt this is exactly what they'll do -- but they should not expect the Democratic Party to help them! Which is one very interesting side effect of this primary:

    for the first time in I don't know how long, the Durham Committee will not be sucking on the teat of the Durham Democratic Party.

    They may decide it's better to keep their money coming in from the Dems and endorse Harris to cover their asses, but I doubt it. Lavonia Alison is one revengeful hag. She'll never back Harris.

    And this is also where the Bill Bell factor comes in -- how much will beng associated with him hurt or help the Democratic Party candidates?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:10 PM  

  • David Harris is going to have to work hard, but he's still in a good position -- I mean, think of it: he's got the most potential to pick up the votes given to the candidates now eliminated. Ali is probably pretty close to topped out, or at least closer than Harris. The factors and currents are now completely different and this is where the numbers game will really come in!

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:12 PM  

  • Barry, I'd say the ONLY thing that helped Victoria Peterson was the Committee vote: what you're looking at with her total is what the Committee endorsement is worth these days.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:13 PM  

  • i don't see Bill Bell as a negative factor at all in the election. care to explain what your thoughts are as to why he might be?

    By Blogger Barry, at 9:39 PM  

  • Ha. Not putting my name to this, but the Durham Committee can only behave in such a negative manner before some real negative effects start to roll in.

    Like not getting their candidates elected.

    I don't know many folks in Durham, of any color, who haven't been personally irritated by something Lavonia said or did. And I say that as a former frequent attendee of Durham School Board meetings, back in the good ol' bad days.

    Maybe she needs a new hat. We should hold a fundraiser!

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 11:14 PM  

  • If we're going to get Lavonia a new hat, I personally think she would look darling in one of those World War I helmets with a big spike on the top.

    As an added bonus, she could also use it to roast marshmallows with.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 7:01 PM  

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