Goodall won’t run again; takes lobby job (The Enquirer-Journal)
N.C. Sen. Eddie Goodall, R-Union, announced he would not seek reelection for his senate seat one day after N.C. Rep. Curtis Blackwood, R-Union, announced he would not seek reelection for the N.C. House.
Goodall and Blackwood said they did not collaborate on their decisions and it was just coincidence that the announcements came so close together.
Goodall was hired by the N.C. Alliance for Public Charter Schools, a group “committed to creating a unified voice for North Carolina’s public charter school movement,” according to its Web site. He called it an “honor” to serve Union County, but that it was time for him to get back in the work force.
In the legislature, Goodall frequently supported the expansion of charter schools throughout the state. He said he wants to push a bill this year that will increase the cap on charter schools in the state from 100 to 106, though he might have to recuse himself from votes due to his position with his new employer.
Goodall’s announcement came as a surprise to many around the county. Union County Republican chairman Jim Bention said the vacant seats will be “hard shoes to fill” and Union would “feel the ripple of their loss.” The legislators, who will finish their 2010 terms, will have served a combined 14 years in the General Assembly.
Rep. Pryor Gibson, the only Democrat from Union County to hold a state office, said that while he did not often vote the same way as Goodall or Blackwood, they were always professional and “represented their constituents well.”
“The people of Union County could always depend on them for expressing what they thought was best,” he said.
Looking toward the short session this year, Gibson said the state was facing the “largest budget shortfall in generations,” and surmised the budget would play a major role in any campaign.
Traditionally, Union has been a Republican county. In fact, registered Republicans outnumber Democrats about three to one in Blackwood’s western District 68; that did not mean the local Democratic party would ignore the race.
Mike Cognac, former Marvin mayor and the Democratic candidate against Blackwood two years ago, said the party would undoubtedly choose candidates and get their names out early.
“The party has been pretty active in soliciting candidates to run,” Cognac, an activist in the Union Democratic party, said.
“The lesson learned is that it’s not good for our party to not contest races even though on paper our chances don’t look all that good.”
Cognac said that it was important for both parties be represented in a race in order to keep each other accountable.
“You need to have a voice of opposition,” he said, pointing out that Blackwood was forced to go on the record on controversial issues he otherwise might be able to escape if a race is uncontested.
Cognac didn’t rule himself out as a candidate, but called himself a “long shot,” to run.
Political pundits are predicting the 2010 races to have a lasting impact and Republican leader Bention said this year would be one of the most important elections in history.
“We’ve seen the effects of the current administration, both in D.C. and especially here in Raleigh. We’ve seen just how the government should not be run,” he said.”2010 will be an opportunity for the people to show and express their concerns which I believe will lead to record changes at both levels.”
by Jason deBruyn
