House Speaker Jim Black told the State Board of Elections last month that former Rep. Michael Decker switched political parties in 2003 because of a lack of respect from fellow Republicans — but GOP members present at a caucus meeting have differing memories of what took place at the time.

In hearings held Feb. 8-10 that investigated Black’s fundraising practices for himself and for fellow Democrats, the speaker explained how Decker told him of his party switch. After Republicans had won a 61-59 majority in the state House, Forsyth County’s Decker sought to become speaker pro tem, a largely ceremonial position but one that provided a little more income. His only opposition within the party came from Joanne Bowie of Guilford County.

“As I understood it from talking to Mr. Decker later,” Black explained at the SBOE hearings February 9, “he had 34 commitments for a position of leadership from his caucus.

“The person nominating him stood up and looked at him and smiled and said, ‘Michael, are you sure you want me to do this?,'” Black continued, “and looked over at Leo Daughtry and winked and sort of made a joke of it. And when they voted shortly thereafter, [Decker] got 16 votes.”

Daughtry, of Smithfield, had just finished a term as the House minority leader, and won the most votes within the caucus to become the 2003 term’s Republican candidate for House Speaker. Then-Rep. Connie Wilson of Charlotte had earned 20 votes for the speaker post, and many in the caucus were adamant that they would never back Daughtry, regardless of the vote outcome.

Decker, according to some other Republicans, was among those wavering in his support for Daughtry. When he lost the election for the speaker pro tem position, after thinking he had been promised enough votes, fellow House members said he was incensed. Decker did not return phone messages seeking comment for this article.

“He changed parties to vote for me because I treated him with respect and dignity, and his own party didn’t,” Black said at the Board of Elections hearings. “And so he came over to my side.”

Daughtry told Carolina Journal that Decker was promised nothing and called the allegations of disrespect from the party “completely ludicrous and untrue.” He said both Decker and Bowie had told him of their interest in running for the pro tem position, and he encouraged both to run.

“I didn’t support or not support either of them,” Daughtry said.

He said at the time “he was worried about his own hide” in his run for the Speaker job, and didn’t concern himself with the pro tem contest. And because of the delicate balance of power with Democrats, Daughtry said he was in no position to promise anything to fellow party members.

Daughtry and other Republicans said Decker was visibly shaken after the vote.

“Michael was very disturbed,” Bowie remembered. “He just boomed out of the room. He was very, very upset.”

Bowie said she worked hard to gain support from House Republicans, calling all except for a handful. She also said that in her speech before the caucus that she proposed “strengthening” the pro tem job “a little bit.” She said she thought she had enough backing to win, but wasn’t certain.

“I thought I had the votes when I went in, but I’d been in there long enough to know they change their mind,” Bowie said.

Meanwhile, she said Decker’s speech before the caucus “was not very good,” and the person who seconded his nomination, Wake County Rep. Paul “Skip” Stam, agreed. He said Decker had asked him to nominate him, but Stam said as a freshman member he didn’t feel it was appropriate, but said he would second him. As a result, Stam said, Decker nominated himself.

“It was like, ‘I know I’m not going to win, but here I am,'” Stam said about Decker’s nominating speech.

Stam said he had no discussions with Daughtry prior to the pro tem secret ballot, and said he voted for Wilson for speaker.

Daughtry also denied any conspiracy against Decker, and said when candidates for a leadership position contact fellow members looking for votes, sometimes they get told they will be supported even though they really won’t, to spare hard feelings.

“It is inconceivable to think anyone would control the votes on a secret ballot,” Daughtry said.

However, House Republicans who ultimately backed Daughtry’s rival in a Co-Speaker arrangement with Black, Moore County Rep. Richard Morgan, said Daughtry’s behavior drove Decker from the party.

“Leo was making lots of promises to every member of the caucus,” recalled Cherryville Rep. Debbie Clary. “I have no doubt that the faction of support that Leo had, had promised Decker they would support him.”

Clary said when some members spoke to each other prior to the caucus votes, they realized they were being promised the same things. She said those who ended up voting for Decker were those who kept their word.

“He was lied to,” Clary said. “It’s that simple. I have never broken my word to a caucus member.”

Clary said Decker was “pushed out of the party,” and didn’t leave because of any financial incentive he was offered beforehand.

“Go back and look at Decker’s voting record,” Clary said of his very conservative reputation, “and then all of a sudden he’s a Democrat? That sort of epiphany doesn’t happen overnight.”

Clary rejected the idea that Decker could have misread the level of commitment he received from fellow members for speaker pro tem.

“I don’t think it was a miscalculation in any way, shape or form,” she said. “[Decker] took things at face value.”

When Decker made his switch to the Democrat Party official on Jan. 24, 2003, he told The News & Observer of Raleigh, “I just decided that Jim Black was the best man for the job. And I felt like the only way to make sure that he had a chance at winning was to switch parties. And so I did.”

Rep. Stephen LaRoque of Kinston, who was a freshman in 2003, said he called Decker on the day he became a Democrat.

“He said that Leo Daughtry had lied to him, and said he was going to support him for speaker pro tem, and he didn’t,” LaRoque remembered, saying he believed Decker. “That is typical behavior of Representative Daughtry.”

LaRoque reacted to Decker’s action by calling for a change in Republican leadership “from top to bottom,” according to The N&O at the time.

Regardless of perspective, though, none of the November 2002 House GOP caucus participants interviewed for this story could remember anybody asking Decker if he wanted to go through with the speaker pro tem nomination, or a “wink” at Daughtry, or any indication of ridicule towards Decker, as Black described to the Board of Elections.

“He was a good friend of mine, I thought,” Daughtry said. “I thought he’d lost his mind. There’s got to be more than just, ‘I’m mad at Leo.’

“I have no earthly idea why it was my fault.”

Paul Chesser ([email protected]) is associate editor of Carolina Journal.