RALEIGH — Gov. Mike Easley defeated Republican Patrick Ballantine Tuesday, setting high expectations for his second gubernatorial term. The Democrat pledged to bring in more jobs, to improve public education and to strengthen the state’s economy.
Easley, a former prosecutor and state attorney general, fared better than Ballantine among all of the state’s age groups and geographic regions according to CNN exit polls, despite the Republican victories of U.S. Senate candidate Richard Burr and President George W. Bush, who beat Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., in North Carolina by a margin of 12 percent.
Voters who regarded the economy and education as the most important issues facing North Carolina residents chose Easley over Ballantine by a margin of four to one. Easley also did extremely well among first-time voters and black voters. Ballantine was more successful among white males and military veterans and fared particularly well among evangelical and born-again Christians.
Ballantine—who had been trailing Easley by double digits for months in most pre-election polls and had by Oct. 16 only raised $4.2 million compared to Easley’s $7.7 million—conceded the election about 9:20 p.m. Tuesday, when just 23 percent of the state’s precincts had submitted results. At that time, Easley had won 54 percent of the reported vote, and Ballantine had won 44 percent. Hours later, with 89 percent of precincts reporting, Easley had won 1,634,760 votes, or 55 percent, and Ballantine had won 1,288,900, or 43 percent. Libertarian candidate Barbara Howe won 2 percent, or 45,503 votes.
“Tonight, the people spoke up not for me, but for opportunity and progress so that every child of every corner of every county of this state will have the opportunity to play in the winner’s circle of our economy in North Carolina,” Easley, 54, said at a rally for state and local Democrats at the Raleigh Convention and Conference Center. His family stood by his side.
“We will not retreat from education in North Carolina,” Easley said. “And we will do whatever it takes to bring good jobs and a better economy to this state and to support the people all the way.”
Ballantine, 39, conceded the election at a televised press conference in Wrightsville Beach, just outside Wilmington. With his wife Lisa by his side, an emotional, candid Ballantine told an audience of supporters, “We didn’t win guys, we didn’t win.”
“It’s been one heck of a ride,” Ballantine continued. “I love this state. I love North Carolina and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
Ballantine called Easley personally to tell him of his concession just before his own press conference.
“His campaign was amazing and we knew it would be,” Ballantine said. “We thought it was the right thing to do, to call him personally.”
Easley’s win continues the Democratic monopoly on the Governor’s Mansion, as a Republican has not been elected governor since Jim Martin in 1988. Easley promised, however, to push for more improvement in his second term.
“I will be bold and aggressive,” he said. “I will not be satisfied with the status quo. I say to the people, I will take your hopes, your dreams, your ambitions and your aspirations and I will embrace them as my own.”
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