From the Independent Tribune:
Four of the five Cabarrus commissioners said if the vote were taken Wednesday, they would vote to participate in the self-financing bond package with Kannapolis for infrastructure improvements on and around the North Carolina Research Campus.
And guess who the lone vote is against the North Carolina Research Campus?
Yep, Coy Privette.
It’s easy enough to say, “This is no big deal”; because the remainder of the commissioners are following common sense. However, this debate brings up an important point. Three short years ago the North Carolina Research Campus would have been politically impossible. The County had no problem helping out with road projects for residential developers nearby retail complexes under previous leadership; but a project of this size would have faltered and failed. They took 5 years to agree to build a jail that was desperately needed - and even then construction didn’t begin on an annex until 2 years after that resolution.
The point is that we’re coming up on another election year, and voters need to get beyond red/blue thinking. There’s more to being an engaged citizen than showing up every four years to vote for the candidates of the party of your choice. Choosing strong leaders in the primaries is actually more important. The Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners is a great example. We’re paying the Cabarrus Youth Tax; because an all-Republican Board decided not to cut spending, but cut taxes and defer necessary construction: schools, jails, parks, etc. However, this all-Republican board is going a decent job of reversing many of the trends caused by that by being honest with the taxpayers and abandoning the silliness of the previous majority. The “November-only” voters didn’t fix that: it was the voters in the Primaries who made the difference.
People defend keeping their voting frequency to four years by complaining that “special interests” control the system. Well, there may be some truth to that; but it’s only because the “special interests” show up when it counts.
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