The Fayetteville Press Newspaper

When the 2008 elections are over black folks in North Carolina and around the nation may feel that they have been discovered. It’s not that they didn’t know we were here all the time; they’re finally beginning to feel the weight of our collective and predictable vote. And although blacks won’t have the impact that they deserve in the Presidential General Election of 2008, they will definitely impact the Democratic Presidential Primaries and Caucuses, and all statewide Primary and General Elections.

The reason that blacks won’t have the impact that they deserve in the 2008 Presidential General Election is because of the Electoral College — a most dreaded and insufferable system that has a disproportionate negative impact on blacks in America. The current Electoral College system allows the white majority in 11 southern states (Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas) to discount 21,000,000 black citizens or 54% of the nation’s black population. This is done by the "winner-take-all" rule in the Electoral College system. But this is not a nationally enforced rule. North Carolina doesn’t have to have a "winner-take-all" system. North Carolina could decide (without federal approval) to have a District System or a Drop Two System, or any system other than the winner take all system that we now have.

Here’s how it works. If you’re a North Carolinian and voted for the Democratic Presidential ticket of Kerry and Edwards, in the 2004 General Election, your representatives — or Electors — actually cast your vote for the Republican Presidential ticket of George W. Bush and Dick Chenney. In regular elections each candidate gets all the votes cast for him or her — not so in the Electoral College system. They actually take votes cast for one candidate and give them to another. In many cases the votes cast for candidate "A" were votes against candidate "B". But if candidate "B" gets the majority of the votes, he ends up with all of his votes plus all the votes cast against him. What’s more; the 11 southern states listed above contain a total of 153 Electoral College vote, or 57% of the votes needed (270) to win the presidency. When Republicans carry the South, they only need 117 Electoral College votes outside the South to win the Presidency. This means that the candidate that carries the South only needs 30% of the remaining 385 Electoral College votes. Sound a little bleak doesn’t it? But all’s not lost yet.

Where Black Democrats in the South have the greatest opportunity is at the State level. At the State level, majority or plurality wins with no transfer of votes or winner take all system. And because blacks overwhelmingly register and vote Democratic, and because Primaries in North Carolina and most Southern States are Closed Primaries [only voters registered with a particular Party is eligible to cast votes in that Party’s Primary election] blacks have greater weight in Democratic Primary elections. Blacks can decide who’ll run in the General Election, which is what really matters. The Voir Dire of politics is the Primary Election. And any third year law student can tell you how important jury selection (Voir Dire) can be to the outcome of the case. Blacks can and should cast themselves as the Judge and decider in the political Voir Dire process.

In North Carolina’s Democratic Primary Election of 2008, there will be 7 statewide races that blacks will have a considerable impact on (U.S. Senate, Governor, Lt. Governor, State Treasurer, Commissioner of Labor, State Auditor and Commissioner of Agriculture. None of these offices will have an incumbent Democrat running; the Primaries are "wide open". NC black voters could represent between 30 and 40 percent of the turnout in these Primary races; and if that happens, the candidate who corner’s and turns-out his/her black vote will be very difficult to beat. Therefore one would assume that the value of the black vote would be so high that candidates would be knocking down the doors, burning the telephone lines and flooding the internet to reach likely black voters. But that’s just not the case in too many campaigns. Too often candidates are advised by their handlers to WAIT! Wait for what? I have never understood this strategy; except when I examine the words of the Chairman of the NC Democratic Party when he said … "The Democratic Party takes the Black Vote for Granted". This is the only piece that makes sense to me when I consider the way some Democratic candidates go-after (or don’t go-after) the black vote.

The Democratic Primary Election of 2008 will be a good time to let Democratic candidates know how import the black vote really is. But let me sound a loud note of caution: "WITHHOLDING YOUR VOTE IS NOT AN OPTION". Not voting is an act of voluntary censorship. Socio-economically suppressed people cannot afford to muzzle themselves. Casting your vote for the right candidate is the proper message to send. So go out and vote for the candidate that showed early interest and commitment to issues and concerns. Make them aware that you are committed to voting your self-interest; and that they can claim your vote if they claim your interest. That’s the right message to send in 2008. That’s sending the message that you hold the key.