By Staff
Cites ‘lack of interest’ from the state level of the party
By NIKIE MAYO, News Editor
A familiar face in the Beaufort County Democratic Party has resigned her post as a member of the state party’s executive committee.
Betty Murphy was chosen in April to serve on the N.C. Democratic Party’s Executive Committee, representing the portion of Beaufort County that is part of the Third U.S. Congressional District. But she says she’s “seen some of the inner workings” that made her feel compelled to resign Thursday. The Beaufort County Democratic Party announced her decision Friday night in a prepared release.
Murphy said she believes the state Democratic Party has had a longtime problem attracting viable candidates for high-level positions.
The Republican congressman from Farmville holds the district seat that used to belong to his father, the late Walter B. Jones Sr. The elder Jones was a Democrat.
Murphy, a Washington resident, was a Beaufort County commissioner candidate in 2002. She says she intends to stay active in the Democratic Party at the local level.
But she says she’s troubled by what she calls a “lack of inclusiveness that goes beyond racial and social boundaries” at the county level.
Beaufort County Democratic Party Chairman Surry Everett said the county party’s executive committee will meet by Sept. 15 regarding the vacancy.
Murphy would not comment on whether she would have a hand in Progressive Democrats of Beaufort County, a new political group started by a handful of area women. The group has scheduled its first meeting for Wednesday.