For the first time in 112 years, the Republicans have taken control of the North Carolina General Assembly. Burke County helped push the Republicans into the majority with the re-election of GOP House members and the election of a new Republican state senator.
Rep. Mitch Gillespie of Marion is ready to take advantage of the Republican majority. He’s thrown his hat into the ring for the House speaker’s position.
“I’m running because I think I have a legitimate chance at being speaker,” Gillespie said. “…I’m running on a platform of reforming how the House operates. And I feel like that resonates with the members and it should resonate with the citizens of North Carolina.”
Gillespie, a former House minority whip, said one of his strengths is his moderate stance.
“I would be the consensus-type candidate,” Gillespie said. “I never got involved in any internal splits or debates in the caucus where people team up with others.”
Gillespie, first elected in 1998, said he’s always been a middle-of-the-road politician.
Concerning the Republican sweep of the state legislature, Gillespie said, “I feel very confident that Republicans are finally going to get North Carolina back on the right track.
And our main focus is going to be balancing our state budget.“
Rep. Hugh Blackwell of Valdese and Sen.-elect Warren Daniel echoed Gillespie regarding the state budget.
Blackwell said, “The starting point needs to be getting the state budget spending under control without raising taxes so we can create a positive economic environment… to produce the jobs that we certainly need in Burke County.”
Daniel said, “We’ll work on implementing some spending discipline and fixing the tax structure of North Carolina so it’s more favorable to businesses and families.”
He said the legislature needs to keep spending increases to a level that’s consistent with inflation and population growth.
“If you control spending then you’re in a better position to deal with shortfalls,” Daniel said.
Both said the state has the highest taxes in the southeast, which isn’t business-friendly.
Daniel said, “Businesses are looking for a stable environment to locate and that are friendly to business development. So far, North Carolina hasn’t done that in the past decade.”
Blackwell said with Republicans at the helm, “it means that we have an opportunity — if we don’t blow it — to make some positive changes that we have talked about a lot, but not been in the position to be as effective as a minority in actually implementing.”
Blackwell said an aspect of the budget he hopes to focus on is the state health plan.
“We need to begin the process of straightening out a state health plan that is costing the state huge dollars,” Blackwell said. “State employees have lost confidence that it’s being managed properly.”
Blackwell said that issue is of particular interest to Burke because Broughton Hospital, J. Iverson Riddle Development Center and the N.C. Department of Corrections employ a large number of local residents.
One issue Republicans will control is redrawing election maps for state House and Senate and congressional districts.
The process occurs every 10 years. North Carolina is special because state law doesn’t grant Democratic Gov. Bev. Perdue veto power over the maps.
Gillespie credits the Democrats’ gerrymandering of the districts for preventing a Republican majority for the past century.
“It was almost impossible for Republicans to take control,” Gillespie said. “…There is no doubt in my mind, if you at least do it fair for everyone, then Republicans are going to have a very good chance of staying in control for at least a decade.”
Blackwell said, “A change after 112 years may not be all bad. I think some people would say it’s long overdue. I just think it’s important that we not spend too much time celebrating, but that we have to get down to the business at hand.”
Travis Fain of the Winston-Salem Journal contributed to this report.
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