The fact that Democrat Roy Cooper kept his position in a tight race that I really though he would lose is a disappointment but there is one victory and a very momentous one to celebrate in my home state. That reason for celebration is the election of Mark Robinson in his election victory as lieutenant governor of NC.
I realize that we really shouldn't be looking at the color of a person's skin but rather the content of their character but it is still a novel occurrence since there has never been a black representative to hold this high of an office in the state of North Carolina. The fact that he is a conservative is the real icing on the cake, at least to this guy.
Robinson defeated Democrat Yvonne Lewis Holley, who had far more money to put into her election thanks to an extremely generous donation from billionaire thorn in the side of conservatives, Mike Bloomberg.
Robinson said this in a post-election interview
"The bottom line is, they tell you money can’t buy happiness, and money can’t buy an election either,"
This victory is rather ceremonial though, to be completely honest as the role of lieutenant governor isn't exactly a terribly important one. It is so unimportant, in fact, that many states do not even bother with the position at all. In North Carolina the LG presides over the state senate and acts as a moderator of sorts. They also can cast tie-breaking votes on deadlocked legislation such as is the role of the Vice President in federal situations of the same sort.
However, other than that their job is mostly ceremonial and an opportunity for them to score points with the public and pursue higher office and that is exactly what North Carolina's previous lieutenant governor attempted to do when he tried, unsuccessfully, to unseat Democrat governor Roy Cooper.
The job might seem meaningless to some but that is just because I don't think many people really pay much attention to their state legislation and that is a real shame because the decisions that are made there will normally have a much greater impact on that affects their day-to-day lives.
Recognize this fella? Well he started his career as a lieutenant governor in Arkansas and eventually went on to be governor of the state and then later had a very strong run at the office of the Presidency. His name is Mike Huckabee and his election goes to show that a job that many people consider irrelevant can lead to really great things if you play your cards right.
Will that end up being the case for Mark Robinson? I think it could be, but only because his name has the same amount of syllables as Mike Huckabee.