Over arching Point: Have you voted yet? If not, why in the *** not? Get it done today. Seriously – put your phone down, go to one of these locations and vote!
You know this is a big election. And so far, so do your neighbors. Since early voting started nearly 2 weeks ago, voter turnout has been way ahead of the pace set in the last midterm election, in 2022, and competitive with the turnout for the 2024 presidential election. It’s a great start but there’s still a long road to go. If you want to follow along, we’ll be giving daily early voting updates for Orange County on our Bluesky account.
If you’re somehow unsure how to vote, or have friends,neighbors, or college students who are undecided, we ‘ve got you covered. Here we present our TBB voting guide
We are going to start with the downballot stuff. Judges, and the amendments. Constitutional amendments should be reserved for truly important issues related to things like voter rights, civil rights, clarifications of constitutional protections.
We suggest voting AGAINST all three amendments . And we are not alone
Carolina Forward has this piece that also recommends voting against all three amendments
Local to Orange County, the Orange County Affordable Housing Coalition also recommends voting against all three amendments – see here
Heck, even the North Carolina Chapter of the Sierra Club checks in on the amendments and has the same suggestions. Vote against all three
There are three constitutional amendments on the ballot. They are all dumb and you should vote no. They were all crafted by Republicans, which means they 1) are primarily designed to encourage Republicans to show up and vote, and 2) are twitter troll posts masquerading as public policy. They are hoping voters read them for the first time in the voting booth and think “hur-de-dur, this sure seems sensible, of course I want people not like me to have to show ID to vote and lower taxes.”
The reality, naturally, is more complex.
Amendment 1: Require all voters, not just those presenting to vote in person, to present photo identification before voting.
Easy peasy, right? Tell that to your 83 year old mom trying to vote by mail who doesn’t have access to a printer. Or your nephew trying to vote from a boat in the Middle East while busy
Amendment 2: Keep the State income tax rate from being raised higher than three and one-half percent (3.5%).
Do you worry that rich people need help from the government to keep more of their money for themselves? Do you think Duke Energy needs help from the government to keep more of its (your) money. Vote yes, if so.
Amendment 3: Require limits on property tax increases by local governments.
Sounds sensible, right? But there’s no determined limit. And no acknowledgement that sometimes local governments legitimately need to raise new revenue, such as when the federal government decides not to pay for disaster relief to punish people who didn’t vote for Trump. If you want NC Republicans, who are spooked by cities and colleges and library books and DEI , vote yes on this amendment and give them control over your local government. We’re a hard NO.
Judges: Vote for:
Anita Earls – NC Supreme Court Associate Justice Seat 1
John S. Arrowood – NC Court of Appeals Judge Seat 1
Tobias (Toby) Hampson – NC Court of Appeals Judge Seat 2
Christine Marie Walczyk – NC Court of Appeals Judge Seat 2
Election analysis from past elections have shown that voters often skipped judges races on the ballot. This is not an election to do that (well, any election is not, but especially now)
Voting issues, like voting districts, voting restrictions, challenges, all go to the courts. If we want to create fair and rational congressional districts (not the crazy gerrymandering that have plagued the state) we need a balance of judges in our courts, especially the State Supreme Court. After the drawn out battle over Allision Riggs, where challenger Jefferson Griffin actually worked to erase over 60,000 votes (remember the Griffin list?)
It is imperative that Anita Earls keep her seat to work towards a more balanced bench.
Why not look down the ballot, get the judges taken care of and then move back up.
US Senate: Roy Cooper
Roy’s a decent guy and a legitimate Carolina Hurricanes superfan. His opponent couldn’t name a single player. OK, on a more substantive level, Whatley pledges to keep supporting Trump‘s agenda in the Senate
Jonah Garson NC State Senate District 23 –
Jonah is our John Ossoff. We don’t love him because he looks great in a tight, white button-down, but we don’t not love that. Jonah’s a hometown hero, born and raised in Chapel Hill and graduated from UNC. We were going to say Jonah’s opponent doesn’t seem terrible according to her website, but then we checked her twitter. In February 2025, she tweeted (https://x.com/LauraPichardoNC) “I want to go to work with @elonmusk and his team!” This was right about when DOGE was destroying the US government in general and USAID in particular, likely contributing to millions of deaths. Yeah, no.
Allen Buansi NC House of Representatives District 56
Buansi sounds like an ancient Japanese craft tradition that uses moss covered cedar timbers to fire beautiful raku pots. Matthew P. Clements sounds like what you name your kid when you want them to become a libertarian. Matthew P. Clements is a libertarian. Vote beauty. Vote Buansi.
US Senate – Roy Cooper
Remember being a preteen at a family reunion and you got stuck sitting by some random uncle at dinner and wanted to die? But then an hour later realized you’d met the most solid old dude ever who would always have your back? That’s Roy. He’s not the cool uncle who buys you booze when you’re 19. He’d rather talk to you about where you should go to law school. And he’ll send in a recommendation for you…handwritten, in cursive. His opponent Whatley? He’s that uncle not allowed at family events anymore but no one will tell you why.
Val Foushee US House of Representatives District 4
If she were one of your high school teachers, she would have arrived at school at 6am, in a pristine 30-year old Buick, so she could prepare for the day with 2 hours of quiet and black coffee. She’d show for school picture day but wouldn’t smile when the photographer asks. She wouldn’t come to Friday night football games because she’s in bed by 8 after watching Masterpiece Theater. She’d forget your name but you’d know she cares about your future.
Karen Stegman Orange County Board of Commissioners At-Large
K-Steg, as she’s affectionately referred to by at least one BlogBlogger, is that authentic politician you’ve been wanting all your life. She had a cushy seat on the Chapel Hill Town Council and gave it all up to move to…Carrboro, like 15 feet away. She’s real like that! She has a huge Dolly Parton portrait in her kitchen. She’s also a big UNC basketball fan and affordable housing advocate. Her opponent runs and loses in literally every local election, which seems tedious and perhaps a sign to try something new. Maybe Elon Musk’s team is hiring.
Beth Bronson Orange County Board of Commissioners District 2
Bronson has a photo on her campaign website where she’s in a hammock in hippie pajama pants and flip flops. Which is exactly the kind of energy we need. As if she woke up that morning and thought, “yeah, why not run for county commissioner? I’m a normal person and I’ll step up and serve – but no way putting on a pant suit.” But she has pant suit experience, having served on the OC Planning Board and Board of Adjustment. Beth’s opponent Lou Capitanio apparently moved here from Orwell, Ohio, where he was “past President of the Orwell Gun Club in Orwell.” He wants lower taxes and “accountability in schools” yet “strong funding for emergency services.” You get the idea.