By By JONATHAN CLAYBORNE
Staff Writer
The approaching year’s mid-term elections may seem remote, but some state races already are heating up — and local races might not be far behind.
The filing period for all local and state offices begins at noon Feb. 8.
During the filing period, candidates sign up to run for office, though many candidates announce their intentions prior to the official opening hour.
Already a number of candidates are pledging to challenge incumbent U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., among them N.C. Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, a Democrat.
Included in the jobs to appear on ballots statewide are a seat on the N.C. Supreme Court and positions on the Court of Appeals, related Johnnie McLean, deputy director of administration for the State Board of Elections.
While the Burr and judicial battles might capture state, and possibly national headlines, county-level races promise to garner the most attention from watchers of the political scene in Beaufort County.
Seats up include those currently held by U.S. Reps. G.K. Butterfield, D-N.C., and Walter B. Jones Jr., R-N.C., both of whom represent portions of Beaufort County.
Also up are state House District 6, which is served by Rep. Arthur Williams, D-Beaufort; and state Senate District 1, held by Sen. Marc Basnight, D-Dare, who represents all of Beaufort County.
Other officials going before Beaufort County voters next year are Sheriff Alan Jordan, Clerk of Court Marty Paramore, and, on a larger scale, District Attorney Seth Edwards.
Additional local ballot items include the Superior Court seat held by Wayland Sermons and the District Court slots held by Sam Grimes and Regina Parker.
Also up in 2010 are three seats on the Beaufort County Board of Commissioners and four seats on the Beaufort County Board of Education, shared Kellie Hopkins, county elections director.
The commissioner seats are currently held by Ed Booth, a Democrat; and Al Klemm and Stan Deatherage, both Republicans.
The school board positions are held by E.C. Peed, William Warren, Teressa Banks and Cindy Winstead.
It isn’t known which of these candidates will face opposition, or whether each officeholder will choose to seek re-election, though some of them already have declared challengers.
For instance, Washington Republican Ashley Woolard has kicked off his campaign against Butterfield. It’s too early to tell whether Woolard will face a primary bout in his heavily Democratic district.
Still, factional fights could be in the offing as political parties and individuals seek to distinguish themselves in races that could evolve into referenda on presidential and congressional leadership in an era of high unemployment.
One group, the Progressive Democrats of Beaufort County, has announced its intention to help unseat at least one Republican commissioner in a bid to regain a board majority for the Democrats.
The progressives’ mission reportedly has drawn the attention of area GOP leaders who are girding to push back against Democratic offensives.
None of the three commissioners whose seats are up said he has begun his campaign.
Booth revealed that he is mapping out his approach while Deatherage said he is in the process of updating a campaign Web site.
“I think I’ve got a pretty good chance of being re-elected, but I always have to trust the public,” Booth said. “They have the final say-so.”
Booth indicated campaign issues could be made out of the economy and the revaluation of real property in the county.
“We’ve still got to find ways to bring in jobs in this county and keep the taxes as low as we can,” he said.
Deatherage said he planned to file as soon as the filing period begins.
“I’ll probably start campaigning as soon as I know we’ve got a primary,” he commented.
He added that he plans to have a larger presence on the internet this time around, and would like to see more forums in which the public could directly question candidates.
“Lord willing my chances are excellent,” he said of his possible re-election.
Klemm acknowledged he hasn’t decided whether to seek re-election, and suggested that he might bide his time before arriving at a conclusion.
“I’ve had a few people ask me about it, mostly people that I’ve had fairly regular contact with,” he stated. “I always throw it back to them as, ‘Why don’t you run?’ What I’d really like to see is have more and better candidates.”
Klemm said he’s retired, and added that he’s heavily involved in community work that he plans to continue regardless of whether he’s re-elected.
The offices of the state Democratic and Republican parties were closed for the holidays. Attempts to obtain comments from state party officials proved unsuccessful.
Some important election-related dates:
— Filing period begins: noon Feb. 8
— Filing period ends: noon Feb. 26
— Primary election: May 4
— Election Day: Nov. 2
Source: N.C. State Board of Elections