In an unexpected move, Wilson emerged as the party’s leader after George Pence III announced that he would not step down as first vice chairman and was not a candidate for chairman.
“He is definitely a supernova among the Democratic superstars,” Pence said of Wilson.
The election, which was by acclamation, was held during a regular meeting of the Moore County Democratic Executive Committee at Van Dusen Hall on the Sandhills Community College campus.
The meeting was also punctuated by a freewheeling discussion of issues that have generated the election of three party chairpersons in six months.
“Now we know what we need to work on,” Wilson said at the end of the sometimes-heated discussion and seconds before adjournment. “Our first need is to work on unity.”
Members stood up and called for a discussion of issues of importance to the Democratic Party, such as education, health, justice, equity, the war in Iraq and the growing number of deaths there.
“We need to win some elections,” shouted one committee member, summing up the concern of party members in Moore County, where a Democrat has not been elected to local office for almost 10 years.
Pence, who presided for the election, said he really did not want to be chairman and had agreed to run for that office only because no one else appeared willing to accept the nomination.
The name of Dr. David Bruton, a former state secretary of health and human services, was placed in nomination at one point, but Bruton quickly declined to serve.
With Pence agreeing to remain as first vice chairman, Democrats then had to elect a secretary, a treasurer and a member of the State Executive Committee. Clare Ruggles, who had been serving as secretary, was elected treasurer to succeed Vicki Campbell, who resigned.
Ruggles was then elected to the state committee and was later tapped by Wilson to continue serving as secretary until a new secretary could be elected. No nominees for the office of secretary emerged during the meeting.
Grievances Aired
Mike Cox, third vice chairman, placed Wilson’s name in nomination.
No one opposed Wilson’s election, but one committee member asked for a discussion of party issues before electing the new chairman. That was voted down after a complicated series of motions and countermotions, although the speaker said his call for discussion was a suggestion, not a motion.
Democrats, who almost filled the meeting room to capacity, finally elected Wilson and the other nominees by acclamation, then launched into their debate about the causes of a split in the local party.
Carl Ramey of Pinehurst, a new member of the committee, said his call for a discussion of divisive issues had nothing to do with individuals nominated for office but stemmed from his concern that the party has not dealt openly with issues.
“It is a fact that this is the third election in six months,” Ramey said. “Obviously there is some undercurrent, and this is not standard operating procedure.”
Apparently, his call for an open discussion as a means of healing wounds hit a tender spot among several committee members. Speakers talked about various problems for an hour.
Among the issues discussed were the handling of proxies at previous meetings, a grievance filed with the state committee by member Jerome Ingram and the charge that former chairwoman Katharine McLeod was called “derogatory names” by other members at early meetings this year, and complaints about the difficulty of getting subjects on the agenda.
Veola McLean charged that McLeod was called names after a heavy turnout of black Democrats at a committee meeting, when an unidentified white member said “African Americans are trying to take over the party.”
Ingram’s absence from committee meetings was mentioned and described as a boycott.
However, Cox cleared the air on that issue by reminding the party that Ingram filed a grievance with the State Democratic Executive Committee last summer when there was confusion about cancellation of a local committee meeting.
The canceled meeting was reactivated and was held, and that was the occasion when a special election was called to choose officers to succeed those who had resigned. Among those resigning was McLeod, who had been elected chairwoman at the county convention in April.
State Democratic Chairman Jerry Meek presided for that special election, during which Mary Alice Wicker was elected to succeed McLeod. However, Wicker was injured in an accident during this period and later learned that her injuries would require more recovery time than expected, leading her to resign a few weeks after the special election.
Cox said Ingram, and others agreeing with him, was not boycotting the committee but was not attending because the State Committee had not ruled on his grievance.
Regardless of his grievance, Ingram could not have attended the Monday meeting because he was in the hospital, the committee learned.
Racism Not the Problem
The race issue was quickly shot down, as several members of both races declared that racism was not at the root of the party’s problems.
“We all want to work for the rights of everyone,” said Ginny Prescott, who chairs a Pinehurst precinct and is a member of the State Executive Committee. Prescott said that the color of one’s skin was not a consideration. “I care about what happens to everyone.”
Vicki Campbell said she was outraged by the “baseless, extreme accusations” that had been made against some members.
“Really, race has nothing to do with the comments made about Katharine (McLeod),” Campbell said.
Pence said he found himself “between a rock and a hard place” last summer when McLeod resigned, first vice chairman R.Q. Simmons resigned, and the party secretary also resigned.
When this rash of resignations left him “holding the bag,” Pence said he called the state party headquarters for advice on what to do next. The Democratic Party Plan of Organization requires that a call for an election be made within 30 days of a resignation.
Pence said he was wrongly accused of being part of “a cabal to discredit Katharine” and of engineering her resignation because “I wanted to take over the party.”
Campbell said that issue was just part of the grievance and does not address the other issues “going on” in the party.
A couple of women called attention to a problem dating to the 2004 election, when two rallies were called in different parts of the county for that night. One was scheduled in Robbins as a gesture to John Edwards, a former Robbins resident who was John Kerry’s vice-presidential candidate. The location was also chosen in an effort to reach more Democrats in the northern part of the county, an area dominated by Republicans. Another rally was later called in Cameron, because, as one person put it, that location was more convenient to the population center, especially for older people.
Although Campbell said that the discussion had only “touched the surface,” the discussion came to an end, and the party proceeded with its regular agenda.
Cox asked party members to find bilingual Democrats who could work with the growing population of Hispanics, whom he described as potential Democrats once they achieve citizenship.
Tammy Harmon of Robbins circulated information about efforts to work with Hispanics interested in citizenship.
The committee learned that the state committee is scheduled to take up Ingram’s grievance in Raleigh Saturday. The announcement brought about a couple of complaints that the state party is slow to act on needs at the local level.
Attention was called to the death last week of Voit Gilmore, a longtime Democratic activist and a man credited with leadership in gaining civil rights for all races in Moore County.
Elaine Sills said the party needs to capture the spirit and leadership of Gilmore, something that won’t happen if local Democrats continue bickering. Her comment drew a round of applause.
Democrats had not lost their sense of humor despite the varied comments issuing from the meeting.
When O’Linda Williams commented thatnot all African Americans were behind the grievance filed by Ingram, Wilson, the new chairman, shrugged and said: “I’m a member of the African American community, and I don’t know anything about it.”
Laughter followed from everyone, including Williams, who made the second to Wilson’s nomination early in the meeting.
Wilson has served as chairman of the Carthage Precinct and is employed by The Pilot newspaper as single-copy manager.
Florence Gilkeson can be reached at 947-4962 or by e-mail at florence@thepilot.com.
