The election involved 2 seats on the 7-member Supreme Court and 3 seats on the 15-member Court of Appeals seats. The winners/losers:

** Supreme Court, seat 1: Sarah Parker, the incumbent white female, beat John Tyson, who campaigned as the "Conservative" candidate on yard signs and campaign literature (he called himself "your conservative Republican candidate" in the Voter Guide). Both participated in public financing program.

** Supreme Court, seat 2: Paul Newby, white male, gained a plurality in a field of eight candidates. This seat became vacant after the primary because of a resignation; candidates in the winner-take-all race were offered a limited amount of the total public financing package. Newby got about 23% of the vote; he was endorsed and widely promoted by the Republican Party (even though three other Republicans were in the field of 8). Judge James Wynn Jr., an African American member of the Court of Appeals and strong advocate for judicial integrity and independence, came in second with 19%. Both Newby and Wynn participated in public financing program.

** Court of Appeals, seat 1: Linda McGee, the incumbent white female, beat William Parker, white male. Both participated in the public financing program.

** Court of Appeals, seat 2: Wanda Bryant, the incumbent black female, beat Alice Stubbs, white female. See note below on Bryant. Both participated in the public financing program.

** Court of Appeals, seat 3: Barbara Jackson, white female, beat the incumbent Alan Thornburg, white male. Thornburg had been appointed to the seat several months earlier to fill a vacancy. Thornburg participated in the public financing program; Jackson tried to, but did not obtain enough qualifying contributions so did not receive public funds.

The good news is:

++ Twelve of the 16 candidates running for the 5 seats enrolled and qualified for the public financing program. Two others (including winner Barbara Jackson) enrolled but did not get enough qualifying contributions. So all winners were endorsing the program through participation in one way or another. No public matching or "rescue" funds were awarded because reported private fundraising/spending (primarily by political parties) did not exceed the trigger by Election Day.

++ Incumbent Judge Wanda Bryant, an African-American member of Court of Appeals, won her race against a white woman who was part of a slate promoted by the Republican Party. Judge Bryant lost in 2002 in a partisan race but was then appointed (by the Democratic governor) to fill a vacancy on the Court of Appeals, so ran again in 2004 and won. She was an ardent champion of the public financing legislation in 2001-2002. Her victory, and the defeat of state Auditor Ralph Campbell, means she is the only African American elected statewide in North Carolina in 2004.

++ The Republican Party promoted a slate of 5 candidates for the 5 seats, primarily through mailings and through educating the GOP base about how to find and vote for GOP candidates on a nonpartisan ballot. Several of these candidates promoted their stances on issues such as same-sex marriage, gun rights, and the death penalty. Three of their candidates were defeated (all lost to women), and two won (Barbara Jackson, a white woman against a white man; Paul Newby, in an unusual winner-take-all plurality election). It's good news that the partisan and issue advocacy did not prevail as a rule, although it clearly had an effect. The Democratic Party also promoted a slate, but it was less consistent, especially in the plurality race where 4 Democrats faced each other in a field of 8 candidates. Keep in mind that Bush carried North Carolina by 56% to 44%, and the GOP candidate for John Edwards's Senate seat beat the Democrat by 52% to 47%.

++ Despite tight finances, the Judicial Voter Guide was prepared and mailed to all households (4 million) in the state and got significant use for a first-time resource. It was applauded by all sides as one of the best features of the new program, and even though it arrived in mailboxes after Early Voting had begun in some sections of the state, it got good attention. It launches a new tradition of voter information that hopefully will expand and become more useful to voters.

++ The $3 tax check-off for the Public Campaign Fund, which was plagued by incomplete and inaccurate wording on different tax software, still brought in $1 million for the public financing program. It is the major source of funding for the Public Campaign Fund. The NC Revenue Department assures us that the wording for the $3 check-off on this year's state income tax form will be consistent and clearly say that marking "Yes" will not change your refund or tax bill.

CLICK HERE for a factsheet on Judicial Public Financing Success, By the Numbers (PDF format).

HELP ADVANCE VOTER-OWNED ELECTIONS IN N.C. --