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Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Digesting some of the results of Election ’16:

President-elect Donald Trump won the state of North Carolina on Tuesday, garnering 50.5 percent of the vote to Hillary Clinton’s 46.7 percent.

In Buncombe County, Clinton took 55.7 percent of the vote to Trump’s 41.1 percent.

-Buncombe County has about 197,000 registered voters, and unofficial returns show that 71 percent turned out and voted, a record turnout. The Buncombe County Board of Elections reported that 139,029 of 197,350 registered voters had cast ballots, the Asheville Citizen-Times reported.

-Democrat Roy Cooper was clinging to a slim lead over Republican N.C. Gov. Pat McCrory as votes continued to be counted. Cooper had 2,281,155 votes to McCrory’s 2,276,383, according to the New York Times. In Buncombe County, Cooper took 59.3 percent of the vote to McCrory’s 37.6 percent.

-In the Election ’16 for chairman of the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners, Democrat Brownie Newman won over first-time Republican challenger Chuck Archerd. (Archerd spent about $250,00 on the race to Newman’s $60,000, according to the Citizen-Times.

-Because Newman is a sitting county commissioner who will move to the chairman’s seat, his open seat is up for grabs. The Buncombe County Democratic Party will meet and pick someone to serve in Newman’s seat through 2018. Current Asheville City Councilman Keith Young announced earlier this year that he’s campaigning for that seat. Former Asheville Mayor Terry Bellamy is also campaigning for the seat. While she didn’t respond to my queries Wednesday, she told the Citizen-Times that she was seeking the seat and that her experience made her stand out. Bellamy handles communications for the Housing Authority of the city of Asheville. Another name bandied about: Asheville City Councilman Gordon Smith, who responded with a “no comment for now” message when I asked him. Democratic Party officials haven’t yet set a meeting date to make their selection. The new board of commissioners is sworn in on Dec. 5.

-The other seats on the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners went as follows: Republican incumbent Mike Fryar held a narrow lead over Democratic challenger Nancy Nehls Nelson. The race is so close that Nelson can request a recount. Incumbent Republican Joe Belcher won over Democrat Ed Hay, and newcomer Robert Pressley, a Republican and former NASCAR driver, beat challenger Democrat David King, a former commissioner who served as a Republican on the board from 2012-14. Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, a Democrat who ran unopposed, won her seat.

-Two incumbents and two newcomers won election to the Buncombe County Board, the Citizen-Times reports.

Three city of Asheville bond referendums to fund parks, streets and affordable housing projects totaling about $74 million all passed easily.

In Woodfin, voters approved a $4.5 million bond that would pay for a new park, a new section of greenway, sidewalks and a whitewater park on the French Broad River at Woodfin River Park, the Citizen-Times reports.

-Buncombe County Republicans celebrated the victory, which injected new life into a battered local party, the Citizen-Times reports.

-A man burned a handmade American flag Thursday morning outside Asheville’s Federal Building in protest of Trump’s election, the Mountain Xpress reported.

-Finally, there’s this: The day after the election, Sovereign Remedies, the beautiful cocktail bar on North Market Street in downtown Asheville, advertised $1 mimosas as a tonic to those still making sense of the previous night’s election results. The bar was slammed. Bartenders burned through cases of champagne, and fans chanted the name of owner Charlie Hodge as thanks for bringing folks together for support. Well played, Charlie. sovereign_remedies_election_16_asheville

Image link for Sovereign Remedies.

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Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

  • 1

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6 Comments

  1. Stewart November 14, 2016

    Yes, flag-burning is a protected form of speech. As it should be. And I suspect we will see more of it, so get used to it. And remember, as John Prine said, “Your Flag Decal Won’t Get You Into Heaven Anymore.”

    Reply
  2. chris November 12, 2016

    This happened in Weaverville, first day after Trump was elected:

    pbs.twimg.com/media/CxEscciWQAQ_LkM.jpg:large

    Reply
  3. william e. carter November 11, 2016

    Anyone who burns an American Flag should be put in jail. I have no problem with anyone protesting. That is why I served in Vietnam. No Flag burning.

    Reply
    1. Barry Summers November 11, 2016

      Decided by the US Supreme Court almost 30 years ago. Maybe read a history book?

      “Though symbols often are what we ourselves make of them, the flag is constant in expressing beliefs Americans share, beliefs in law and peace and that freedom which sustains the human spirit. The case here today forces recognition of the costs to which those beliefs commit us. It is poignant but fundamental that the flag protects those who hold it in contempt.”
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_v._Johnson

      If you arrest people who burn a flag, you’re doing way more harm to it than they are.

      Reply
    2. Barry Summers November 11, 2016

      Decided by the US Supreme Court almost 30 years ago. Maybe read a history book?

      “Though symbols often are what we ourselves make of them, the flag is constant in expressing beliefs Americans share, beliefs in law and peace and that freedom which sustains the human spirit. The case here today forces recognition of the costs to which those beliefs commit us. It is poignant but fundamental that the flag protects those who hold it in contempt.”
      Texas V. Johnson, 1989: bit.ly/1ND6MBf

      If you arrest people who burn a flag, you’re doing way more harm to it than they are.

      Reply
      1. Peter Robbins November 12, 2016

        Well said. Although it might have been a better gesture, at this particular moment, to wave the flag upside down.

        Reply

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