RALEIGH – A challenger and an incumbent are battling to be the GOP’s nominee for a revamped N.C House District 10 seat. The two are Rep. Stephen LaRoque of Lenoir County and John Bell of Wayne County.

The 10th District went from a relatively compact district including Greene County and portions of Lenoir and Wayne counties to a district that meanders through four eastern North Carolina counties — Wayne, Greene, Lenoir, and Craven.

The demographics of the district have changed also. It went from being a swing district to one that is more favorable to Republicans.

As an example, in the old district, Democrats held a 55 percent to 28 percent voter registration advantage over Republicans. In the new district, the Democratic edge is down to 45 percent to 34 percent. Voters in the old district gave Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue a 55 percent to 43 percent margin over GOP nominee and former Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory in 2008. In the new district, that advantage falls to 2 percent – 50 percent to 48 percent.

Bell said he decided to run after receiving a number of phone calls from people urging him to run because they wanted a representative who didn’t come with “baggage.”

“The people need a proper representative in Raleigh, one they can be proud of,” Bell said.

But Bell said that reports into the practices of LaRoque’s businesses weren’t the reason he decided to run.

Last year, a report by the liberal group N.C. Policy Watch questioned LaRoque’s salary and business practices as head of two economic development organizations, the East Carolina Development Co. and Piedmont Development Co.

LaRoque said he wasn’t interested in talking about the report, adding that it’s not an issue in the primary campaign.

“I don’t have any comments, and no, it really hasn’t come up,” LaRoque said.

Bell said that a lot of people believe that LaRoque hasn’t been as active in Wayne County as he should have been. He said he felt that voters needed a representative who could work across party lines.

“The concern is that Rep. LaRoque cannot do that,” Bell said.

LaRoque said he feels like he’s served the Wayne County area of District 10 well. He cites legislation to cancel Goldsboro’s annexation of the Lane Tree area as an example. He said he has already worked with a citizen in Wayne County over an issue with the Department of Transportation. That citizen lives in an area of Wayne County added to District 10 when the General Assembly approved new district maps last year.

“I am available to my constituents in Wayne County as much as I am to the ones in Greene and Lenoir, and will be available to the ones in Craven just as much,” LaRoque said.

LaRoque is in his third term in the House. He said he wants to continue in the job so he can help change things for the better.

“I like to be a problem-solver and change things for the better,” LaRoque said.
LaRoque said that voters are talking a lot about jobs and the economy, but they’re also talking about enacting a voter ID law. He also supports eliminating Sundays from early voting.

He also supports drug testing and mandatory work programs for people on government assistance.

“People are sick and tired of the entitlement mentality that people have,” LaRoque said. He went on to explain a little about how his proposal would work. “If you don’t show up [for work], you don’t get a check that week. And you’ve got to accept any job that’s offered,” he said.

Bell is manager of sales and business development for the N.C. Community Federal Credit Union in Goldsboro. He said he also supports enacting voter ID legislation. He said many voters he’s talking to are worried about the economy.

“We’ve got to bring jobs to North Carolina,” Bell said. He said changes are needed in the state’s infrastructure system and in the tax system.

“We’re taxed to death in North Carolina; we need to revamp our tax code,” Bell said, saying that he supports flat taxes across the board. “The less taxes we pay, the better off the citizens are going to be.”

Bell said changes are also needed for a “broken” education system. He said teachers aren’t allowed to teach. “Now our education is based off of tests,” Bell said. He also said a lot of money going to pay for administration in the schools should be redirected to the classroom.

A sports analogy came up when Bell suggested that the nation and state needed more “first-round draft picks” running the government.

He said UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke University always recruit the best of the best basketball players for their teams. Referring to politicians, Bell said, “We don’t have the first-round draft picks that we need.”

The winner of the May 8 GOP primary faces Democrat Jim Babe Hardison of Kinston in the November general election.

Barry Smith is a contributor to Carolina Journal.