How can incumbent candidates lose

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Go here to link your subscription. His process of preparing for an election was almost ritualistic. He read newspapers and listened to the debates on the radio and television. Dad almost always voted Republican, but he told me that I should understand the issues before I cast my vote for either party. By the time I turned 18, voting had become almost second nature. It was a proud moment for both my parents to see me walk into the voting booth and pull that red lever for the first time.

As in elections past, this one includes claims of unscrupulous behavior. Journalists both love and hate elections. We love the excitement. We love the rhetoric. We love the deadline factor and we love the apparent stakes in the balance of hard fought elections. Election Day for a journalist often begins the night — or nights — before.

Making sure any background we need for deadline stories are ready to go once polls close. Often, I hate to admit, many journalists never learned the Dewey Defeats Truman lesson.

Back in the day — you know, before the internet — Election Night in the newsroom included ringing desk phones and journalists shouting across the newsroom as the latest wave of results were released. It was not unusual for reporters, impatiently waiting at the county elections office, to dial into their newsroom and dictate their stories to an editor, who was also waiting impatiently.

The advent of the internet also made our lives both difficult and easy. Results can now be posted online within seconds of their release, which tighten an already tight deadline for reporters. Early voting and provisional ballots add another dimension to Election Night.

While early voting results should be included in the latest results, provisional ballots may not be fully counted by the end of the day on Tuesday. One more factor our team is keeping an eye on is the Red Springs Board of Commissioners which plans to conduct their regular meeting on the first Tuesday of the month — Election Day. One day forward or back would sure help us out. But last I checked, the voting booths still appear every Election Day. This will ensure the election takes place on schedule and eliminate any confusion voters might have about the names on the ballot.

The Public Schools of Robeson County is warning people that individuals are going door-to-door in various neighborhoods throughout the county claiming to be selling raffle tickets on behalf of W.

Knuckles Elementary School. The former functionally obsolete bridge was about 54 years old and was one of seven bridges in Bladen, Columbus, Cumberland, Harnett and Robeson counties to be replaced by NCDOT through the end of We are encouraged that other local projects will follow this pattern. THUMBS DOWN: According to recent data provided to the Robesonian, the Federal Bureau of Investigation reports that more law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty this year than in , and more than 4, additional assaults on officers were reported in than the previous year.

This is a trend that must stop. Our first-responders are often the first on the scene of emergencies, regardless of their severity. Legislators, church congregations, school classrooms and families must teach civility and respect for our local law enforcement and other first-responders. Results from the survey will provide timely insights into the state of the economy. Especially important will be the information gathered to help local businesses weather rapid changes from the COVID pandemic.

The deadline to sign on as a participating business is Oct. Voters need to understand that it is our local elections that have the greatest impact on our everyday lives. Sure, national issues capture news broadcasts, but it is our locally elected officials in the Town Halls around the region that create budgets that pay for local improvements in a variety of ways.

Do your part. Vote on Nov. Employers of all kinds across our county continue to struggle to find qualified employees. We encourage this kind of outreach to help staff the many public and private sector jobs available. Now, as the weather cools and draws more people indoors, we encourage people to continue the practice of combatting this fatal virus.

Wear masks, get vaccinated and continue the practice of social distancing. I was trying to put salve on his wound with some encouraging words, insisting that better days were ahead for UNC football, but Don — who had not missed a home UNC football game since at that time, a streak ended by Hurricane Matthew in — was having none of it.

I know my Anyone But Carolina friends will enjoy my column today, but they are going to have to suffer through this first: UNC still has the most accomplished football program in this state, with wins and 35 bowl games, more than any of the other Big Four schools and by a bunch. This year, the experts told us, was going to be different. Twenty-one out of 22 Tar Heels who started in the Orange Bowl last year were returning, including quarterback Sam Howell, a Heisman candidate when the season began.

All that led to preseason predictions of a top team with some suggesting an inside lane for the college football playoffs. But instead of being in advance of a trip to Notre Dame on Oct. The games are more excruciating than enjoyable, and the only thing keeping me from full-throttle depression is the Atlanta Braves. State are a combined and unbeaten in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Well, I only know one Duke fan who admits there is a football season, Nicky McKeithan, and the Blue Devils have never recovered from his graduation after the season, an campaign for the 14th ranked Blue Devils that included a win in the Orange Bowl.

McKeithan had a touchdown and an interception in that Orange Bowl and gets my vote for the greatest athlete this county has produced. But Tatum contracted Rocky Mountain spotted fever and died, taking with him the promise of a different UNC football script for all my lifetime.

There have been courtships with greatness for UNC football: the three ACC championships in the s under Coach Bill Dooley; the two top finishes under Dick Crum in the early s; the top finishes in and under Mack Brown, who then left for Texas; the incredible talent brought to UNC by Butch Davis from before a media-driven scandal led to his firing; the start in under Coach Larry Fedora; and, of course, the return of Mack Brown in , who brought with him like Tatum an NCAA title, his won at Texas.

I am an eternal optimist by nature, a useful attribute for a UNC football fan. Something I have noticed as I have gotten older is that there is a dwindling list of things to look forward to. On this, UNC football delivers big-time. Because with UNC football, there is always something to look forward to: We call it next year. Downtown Lumberton is becoming a gem in Robeson County. Thirty-five senators and all House members face the prospect of losing their jobs in November.

But political analysts tracking the races say that only a relatively small number of races — fewer than 50 House seats and just a handful of Senate races — are truly competitive. A look at past election cycles helps explain why. Since , voters have sent their incumbent House representative back to Washington 93 percent of the time. Senators enjoy only slightly less job security — 82 percent. Academics have speculated on the multiple reasons that congressional incumbents have enjoyed an advantage over the years.

Incumbents have traditionally used their positions to win favor with voters by offering a variety of constituent services or by pointing to increased funding they've captured for the home state or district. Americans going to the polls that November obviously agreed. Jimmy Carter D It seemed as if everything that could go wrong for the Democrat did. Unemployment soared and the inflation rate reached double-digit highs, leaving the domestic economy in its worst shape since Hoover. Massachusetts Sen.

Ted Kennedy decided to challenge Carter but could not prevent his renomination. George H. Bush R Bush seemed liked a lead-pipe cinch to win a second term in the White House, but an underperforming domestic economy late in his term, combined with a damaging third-party challenge from colorful Texas billionaire Ross Perot, spelled political doom for Bush.

A former Rhodes scholar from Arkansas who had admitted to smoking dope and avoiding military service in the Vietnam War was the main beneficiary. Bill Clinton became the 42nd president of the United States and delivered two terms of relative peace and prosperity. So back to the original question. If you are President Obama, how worried should you be?