Once again, it’s time to go over the Lincoln County sample ballot and select my picks for the people who are going to pretend to be in charge of things for awhile. We’ll start at the top:

President: Bob Barr. He’s not ideal–not only is he not Libertarian ideal (despite his party affiliation), he’s not even Ron Paul ideal, and if you’d told me in 2002 I’d be voting for him for President I’d have laughed in your face–but he is a darn sight better than either of those other two bozos. Plus, a vote for Bob Barr is a vote for ballot access for Libertarians in North Carolina.

US Senate: Christopher Cole. Great guy. I never have any qualms about voting for him.

US House: This was tough. Not that I was ever considering voting for McHenry, but the choice was Daniel Johnson or nobody. In the end, I figure the Democrats need all the help they can in this
district, so I’m voting for Johnson. (Why, oh why couldn’t I live in BJ Lawson’s district?)

Governor: No question about it, Mike Munger. He owned the debates. My favorite was when, after McCrory and Perdue had given their usual non-answers (can Purdue say anything other than a string of sound bites?) he began an answer with, "Well, I’m actually going to answer the question…" He was the only candidate putting forth specific solutions for the problems facing North Carolina, and he did it without compromising his Libertarian principles or coming across as a radical. See? It can be done!

Lt. Governor: Phillip Rhodes. Like Chris Cole above, no qualms whatsoever. Great Libertarian, great guy.

Lesser offices below the fold.

Attorney General: Bob Crumley. He’s a Ron Paul Republican. Close enough.

Auditor: Leslie Merritt, as another of the few pro-liberty candidates to be found on this ballot other than Libertarians.

Commissioner of Agriculture: None.

Commissioner of Insurance: None. Which really hurts, because there’s a Libertarian in the race, but a bad candidate is a bad candidate. Sorry, but he’s about as Libertarian as Barack Obama. (Although the Democrats might find him a preferable candidate to their own…)

Commissioner of Labor: None.

Secretary of State: None.

Superintendent of Public Instruction: None. (Why oh why didn’t you run, Eric?)

Treasurer: None. (I’m getting very depressed here.)

NC Senate: Doesn’t matter. Saddam Jim Forrester is the only name on the ballot.

NC House: Same, only this time it’s Johnathan Rhyne Stalin. Sigh.

County Commissioner: This is where the hard choice is made. It’s very tempting to just vote for the three who aren’t Carrol Mitchem or Alex Patton. However, with Buff supporting
property theft (uh, I mean, "managed growth" (no, I mean "property
theft")), it looks like it’s Gary Eudy (with some reluctance) and George Arena (I feel better about this one) for me.

Supreme Court Associate Justice: I’m going to have to go with Bob Edmunds on this one. I was very impressed with his views on the rights of the accused in his article, "How Can You Defend Those People?" in the Fall 2003 North Carolina State Bar Journal. Besides, he’s an astronomy buff with his own backyard telescope, so he can’t be that bad!

Court of Appeals Judge: The first is another Communist election, so it’s going to be John Martin Khrushchev no matter what.

For the next, Jewel Ann Farlow seems to be a good constructionist, so I’ll take her over a guy who has the endorsement of social workers any day.

Lacking other information, the Ervin-Ruth race came down solely to endorsements: Since Sam Ervin, IV was endorsed by defense attorneys and women attorneys, that beats Ruth who was also endorsed by social workers.

Beasley/McCollough: Neither candidate looks good.

For the next one, I’m going to have to vote for Linda Stephens. She’s done a very good job putting not only endorsements but also rulings on her website. (She even has a YouTube page–how cool is that?) It all looks good.

Next is Bob Hunter, Jr., who is so libertarian even Tom Bailey is voting for him.

District Court Judge 27B: This is comprised of four separate communist elections for Dean Black Gorbachev, Dina Foster Andropov, Meredith Shuford Tikhonov, and Larry Wilson Molotov, so it doesn’t matter.

Board of Education At Large: None.

Board of Education Ironton: Mike Burke. Just because I won’t be voting for any Dellingers for awhile.

Board of Education Lincolnton: Ed Hatley. No surprise to those who know me or him.

Board of Education North Brook: The only option is Tommy Houser Ryzhkov.

Soil and Water Supervisor: David Choate. At least he seems cognizant of the limits of his office powers and the effect he can have. Save us from politicians who try to save us!