Endorsements from the Wake County Voter Coalition and NCAWA

I enjoyed a wonderful sunny day yesterday greeting voters at Chavis Community Center. A diverse, steady and energetic stream of voters poured through the polling place all afternoon. One youth group came straight from its Sunday service so that many of the members could place their first-ever votes. Parents were accompanied by their children -- including a 96 year old mother whose daughter pulled in for curbside voting. Some voters had been voting in Wake County for years, others arrived with voter registration forms in hand. I was accompanied by members of the Wake County Voter Education Coalition, whose endorsement I was proud to receive last week, and was joined by the representatives of other campaigns. Then, topping off an already good day, I got home to the news that I have received the endorsement of the NC Association of Women Attorneys. The NCAWA has a judicial endorsements committee that investigates and evaluates candidates on several criteria. The committee considers not only the legal skill and ability of those in a race, but also such things as judicial temperament, and involvement in the community and the profession. I am humbled and heartened by the faith that so many have placed in me, and will continue to work hard to serve our Wake County communities.

Responsibility

Our founding fathers promised justice for all, and I have done what I can to maintain that promise. I have chosen to participate in groups and organizations that work to protect those with the least access to resources, the least access to education, and the least access to justice. I earned a grant to represent asylees fleeing oppression and seeking refuge on our shores. I tutored in an elementary school, meeting with youngsters whose lack of English proficiency disadvantaged them in their classrooms. I volunteered and taught with the Red Cross for over a decade, passing on what I had learned about how to protect the injured and ailing. I have represented victims of domestic violence free of charge. As a member of the Board of Governors of the North Carolina Academy of Trial Lawyers, I am proud of the banner that reads, "Protecting People’s Rights,” and that provides continuing inspiration to members. I believe that our courts are not only responsible to the people, but responsible for providing a fair and balanced playing field to the people who are at highest risk.

Early Voting Begins Tomorrow

Early voting begins tomorrow, April 17th at nine sites throughout Wake County, including the Board of Elections. Placing your vote at your convenience between the 17th and May 3rd, will allow you to avoid the mayhem of election day -- or to spend your time on the 6th working for the candidate of your choice. And, in the event that you are not yet registered to vote in North Carolina, have changed your address and need to change your voter registration, or for any other reason need to re-register, you may do so on the same day as you vote at any of the nine early voting sites. You cannot register and vote the same day on May 6th. However you choose to exercise your right to vote, I hope that you will exercise this most fundamental of our Constitutional rights.