FEBRUARY 18, 2010 ISSUE
Election Coverage: Your Vote 2010
Did you know that members of the U.S. Congress make $174,000 for an annual salary? Did you know Watauga County’s clerk of superior court makes more than $82,000 annually? Get the facts through our 2010 election coverage starting below.
United States Senate, North Carolina
Each U.S. state is represented by two senators, regardless of population, who serve in the United States Senate, which is located in the north wing of the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Currently, U.S. Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) and U.S. Senator Kay Hagan (D-NC) represent North Carolina. Burr was elected in 2004, Hagan was elected in 2008, making Burr the senior senator—but also the incumbent in the 2010 election.
The winner of the 2010 United States Senate race for North Carolina will earn a $174,000 annual salary, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections, plus retirement and health benefits. Each candidate for U.S. Senate must pay 1 percent of the seat’s annual salary, or $1,740, to enter the race.
U.S. Senators serve staggered six-year terms; the terms are staggered so that approximately one-third of U.S. Senate seats are up for election every two years.
Richard Burr: (I) REP • Cal Cunningham: DEM • Marcus W. Williams: DEM
Eddie Burks: REP • Michael Beitler: LIB • Ken Lewis: DEM • Brad Jones: REP
United States House, North Carolina’s Fifth District
Each U.S. state receives representation in the U.S. House of Representatives in proportion to its population—North Carolina’s population currently translates into 13 representatives, 13 districts.
Watauga County sits within North Carolina’s Fifth District, which also includes Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Davie, Stokes, Surry, Wilkes and Yadkin counties, along with portions of Forsyth, Iredell and Rockingham counties. The seat is currently held by Rep. Virginia Foxx (NC-5), the 2010 election’s incumbent.
The House of Representatives convenes in the south wing of the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Like the U.S. Senate, each representative earns a $174,000 annual salary, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections, plus retirement and health benefits. Also, each candidate must pay 1 percent of the seat’s annual salary, or $1,740, to enter the race.
Virginia Foxx: (I) REP • Billy Kennedy: DEM
North Carolina Senate, 45th District
The North Carolina Senate consists of 50 members who serve two-year terms in Raleigh. Each senator represents a district, which can cover between one and eight counties, depending on population density. The 45th District includes Alexander, Ashe, Watauga and Wilkes counties, and is currently represented by Sen. Steve Goss (D-45).
The winner of the 2010 North Carolina Senate race will earn a $20,659 annual salary, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections; to enter the race, each candidate must pay 1 percent of the seat’s annual salary, or $207.
Steve Goss: (I) DEM • Daniel F. Soucek: REP • Jeffrey Elmore: REP
North Carolina House, 93rd District
The North Carolina House of Representatives consists of 120 members who serve two-year terms in Raleigh. Each senator represents a district, which can cover anywhere from a small portion of a county to up to four counties, depending on population density. The 45th District includes Ashe and Watauga counties, and is currently represented by Rep. Cullie Tarleton (D-93), who has held the position since 2006.
The winner of the 2010 North Carolina House race will earn a $20,659 annual salary, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections; to enter the race, each candidate must pay 1 percent of the seat’s annual salary, or $207.
Cullie Tarleton: (I) DEM
Watauga County Board of Commissioners
The Watauga County Board of Commissioners is a five-member policy-making board that meets twice a month and levies taxes, develops a budget and directs the fiscal policy of the county under the provisions of the local government budget and Fiscal Control Act. The commissioners appoint the county manager, county attorney, a clerk to the board and make numerous appointments to county and public corporation boards, commissions and committees. The commissioners also confirm the appointment of a tax supervisor/collector. The commissioners have the power to adopt ordinances, as well as to serve as the Board of Equalization and Review in hearing property tax assessment appeals. The board members are each nominated from a separate district and are elected countywide on a partisan basis for two- and four-year staggered terms. Every two years, three of the five commission seats are up for election with the lowest vote getter serving a two-year term and the remaining two commissioners serving four-year terms. Current board members are Jim Deal, chair; William R. Winkler, III, vice-chair; John Cooper; Tim Futrelle; and Winston Kinsey.
The commissioners receive an annual stipend of $6,860.76, plus a travel allowance of $2,426.88, for a total of $9,287.64. The chairman’s stipend, once he is elected, increases to $8,265.60, plus a travel allowance of $3,235.80—a total of $11,501.40 annually.
Winston Lee Kinsey: (I) DEM • Lowell Thomas: DEM
Nathan Miller: REP • Billy Ralph Winkler: DEM
Watauga County Board of Education
The Watauga County Board of Education is a five-member board that meets once a month to set policy and establishes guidelines for school operations. Board members are elected on a nonpartisan, countywide basis, with three positions on the board open for election every two years. Candidates file in January and the field is narrowed to six candidates during the May primary election. Voters elect three members in November and the Board is seated in December of the election year.
The board is currently comprised of Lowell Younce, chair; Steve Combs, vice chair; and Deborah Miller, Dr. Lee Warren and Marsha Walpole.
The chair receives an annual salary of $5,000, while each member receives a salary of $4,500. Additionally, each board of education member, as well as the chair, receives an annual travel stipend of $1,500.
Charlie Wallin •Marsha Walpole • Scott Courtney
District Attorney, 24th District
District attorneys are the elected representatives of the state in all criminal and some juvenile matters. The primary responsibility of the district attorney, with his or her assistants, is to prosecute all criminal cases filed in the Superior and District Courts.
District attorneys also advise local law enforcement and prepare the criminal trial docket. The district attorney and the assistant district attorneys are paid by the state and are not allowed to have their own private law practice.
The district attorney for the 24th District in North Carolina serves Avery, Madison, Mitchell, Watauga and Yancey counties and is elected to a four-year term. Gerald W. Wilson, a Republican, is the incumbent district attorney and is seeking reelection in 2010.
The entry-level salary for the district attorney is $119,300. The filing fee for the district attorney’s seat is 1 percent of the annual salary.
Gerald W. Wilson: (I) REP
Watauga County Sheriff
The sheriff is the head of the Watauga County Sheriff's Office, which provides primary law enforcement services to the citizens of Watauga County in order to protect their lives, wellbeing and property.
Candidates for sheriff must have had residency in the county one year prior to the November general election. Candidates must pay a filing fee of 1 percent of the annual salary of the office.
Len D. Hagaman, a Democrat, is seeking reelection to a four-year term as sheriff. The entry-level sheriff’s salary in Watauga County is $65,617.
Len (L. D.) Hagaman: (I) DEM
Clerk of Superior Court
The voters of the county elect the clerk of superior court to a four-year term. Clerks are paid by the state, with their salaries scaled in accordance with the population of their counties.
The clerk is responsible for all clerical and record-keeping functions of the Superior Court and District Court. The clerk also handles the probate of wills and the administration of estates of decedents, minors and incompetents. The clerk also hears a variety of special proceedings such as adoptions, incompetency determinations and partitions of land and is empowered to issue arrest and search warrants and to exercise the same powers as a magistrate with respect to taking pleas of guilty to minor littering, traffic, wildlife, boating, marine fisheries, alcoholic beverage, state park recreation and worthless-check offenses.
Wanda K. Howell, a Republican, is the incumbent seeking reelection to the clerk’s seat. The salary is $82,400, and the filing fee for the seat is 1 percent of the annual salary.
Wanda K. Howell: (I) REP • Steve Combs: DEM
Diane Cornett Deal: DEM • Lowell K. Younce: REP • Tom Trexler: DEM
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