Welcome to our 2014 Election Night Results Thread!
We're tracking the results as they come in. You can view Orange County results on the State Board of Elections website, or check out our charts below, which we will be updating as results come in.
Our charts below now report all unofficial results from all 44 Orange County precincts. Results are not official until they are canvassed.
In the Sheriff's race, Charles Blackwood barely bests David Caldwell, but as Blackwood is well under 40% of the vote, this race is heading for a July runoff. Caldwell has indicated to WCHL that he intends to request that runoff.
Mark Chilton beats incumbent Deborah Brooks and challenger Sara Stephens in the Register of Deeds race, and narrowly avoids a runoff with 42.5% of the vote.
Incumbent Barry Jacobs gets another term for his at-large County Commission seat.
And incumbent Earl McKee gets another term in his District 2 seat.
For the Orange County School Board, incumbents Donna Coffey and Brenda Stephens will return to the Board with newcomers Tom Carr and Rosa Williams.
And in Carrboro, Bethany Chaney will fill the empty seat left vacant by now-Mayor Lydia Lavelle.
Issues:
Comments
First results are in
We're reporting the first results that are in. 26 out of 44 precincts in so far.
I cast my last vote in Orange County
I cast my last vote in Orange County. I'll leave the county happy if Chilton wins here tonight and Robin Hudson moves forward in the NC Supreme Court race.It was a good 8 year run. My husband and I both found jobs out of the county (but within NC) and my apartment got bought out and is being renovated (gentrified) now so that they can charge nearly double the rent, so it was time to move on.I got involved in Jim Neal's primary campaign against Hagan (lost), volunteering for the Obama campaign (won x 2, the 2nd time as a DNC delegate), and the Mark Kleinschmidt for Mayor Campaign in 2009 as the Volunteer Coordinator where we squeaked by a victory with about 100 votes, all while living here in Orange County. Not to mention going to grad school for an MPA and getting a job working in the political arena full time while residing here.I'm moving to Durham now, and may be moving to Alamance County in a year or two, so I won't be far. But I've cast my last vote in Orange County for the foreseeable future with this primary. I credit OC and the great posters here a lot with helping me get up to speed on the candidates and issues to help make that level of involvement possible. I'll miss you guys!
All 44 precincts are in
...and our data is updated in the first post.
Ugh
Sorry to hear the guy that said he's going to break the law got elected. Didn't work for this guy: http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/north-carolina-clerk-accepts-gay-marria...not sure why Chilton thinks it'll be different in his case. I
hope they kick him out of office if he goes through with it. Not
because of my take on gay marriage (which is irrelevant either way), but
because it's not right for our elected officials to be breaking their
oaths and the law.
Republicans that changed party affiliation
Charles Blackwood & some other sheriff candidates urged Republicans to switch to unaffiliated or Democrat in order to vote in the sheriff election. From Feb. 1 until the April 11 deadline, 161 voters made the switch. It's likely that a significant number made the switch prior to Feb. 1.
can't blame them
If you want to have a vote in in Orange County governance, you basically need to register as a Democrat or unaffiliated.
who is eligible to vote July 15
For the July 15 Orange County Democratic second primary for sheriff, registration is frozen at April 11. Eligible to vote July 15 are all registered Democrats, unaffiliated voters who voted in the May 6 Democratic primary, and unaffiliated voters as of April 11 who did NOT vote on May 6. Ineligible are registered Republicans and registered Libertarians. Also ineligible are unaffiliated voters who voted on May 6 in the Republican or Libertarian primaries or who did not want a party primary ballot and got only a nonpartisan ballot (Supreme Court and for some precincts Orange County school board). Persons registering to vote after April 11 are NOT eligible (except that those who were naturalized after May 6 or who had their rights restored after May 6 can register on election day) . If you moved within Orange County after April 11, you vote at the precinct you were eligible for on May 6. The law states that the second primary is a continuation of the first primary
Undeniably true
but the numbers were unique to this election and had an impact on my race.
Depends on the definition of "impact"
I don't think 161 party-switchers had all that much impact when you lost by 1,396 votes.
more than 161
It was 161 party-switchers after Feb. 1, but Mark said there likely were more before that date. As to whether it impacted the outcome, I certainly don't know.
Party switchers had no
Party switchers had no impact on the Dist 2 race. Candidates have to show a difference between them and the incumbent and Mark didn't do that. Earl is liked and has done his homework in this County. Both commissioner incumbents kept there seats unlike two years a go.Chilton on the other hand did show a difference and coupled that with outside group influence helped him win.
can't see if you don't look
A large number of voters did not see a difference because they didn't attend any forums, read our ads in the News of Orange, compare our quesstionnaire answers, or read our web-sites.
95%
I estimate that 95% of the party-switchers voted for McKee.