Oct
6
Written by:
Dan Besse
10/6/2006
Dan Besse, a Democratic member of the Winston-Salem City Council, said yesterday that he would run for lieutenant governor of North Carolina in the 2008 general election.
Although the election is two years away, the day that candidates can file to run for office is in 16 months. That is why Besse was packing his bags in the morning to do some handshaking in Asheville this weekend.
The Progressive Democrats of North Carolina, a political-action committee, invited potential candidates for lieu-ten-ant governor, including Bes-se, to attend an annual meeting Saturday.
Besse said that potential candidates on the guest list include Pat Smathers, the mayor of Canton; Hampton Dellinger, a former legal counsel to Gov. Mike Easley; Walter Dalton, a state senator from Rutherford County; and Cynthia Brown, a former member of the Durham City Council.
Other names spoken in Dem-ocratic circles as possible candidates are James Harrell, a state representative from Elkin; and A.B. Swindell, a state senator from Nash County.
Besse, 51, has represented the Southwest Ward since 2001.
Council members speak of him as a thoughtful representative who is able to explain issues well. For example, he sends out a monthly newsletter about his ward by e-mail .
Besse's opponents in Ashe-ville might sound off on similar priorities: economic development; natural resources; public health; education; and transportation. But Besse said that his time as a council member has given him a different perspective.
"I wouldn't take on the mantle of favorite, but I wouldn't agree to a characterization of long shot either. The key from my perspective for the campaign is this: I think we need a leader who understands both the challenges and the opportunities presented by our growing urban areas," he said.
Statewide population growth will continue to strain services in urban regions, he said. Better planning has to be done to handle school enrollment, road improvements and the conservation of natural resources.
As a council member, he represents Winston-Salem as a member of the Piedmont Triad Partnership, which is a regional economic-development organization; the Piedmont Triad Early Action Compact, an oversight group for a regional clean-air plan; and the Winston-Salem Ur-ban Area Transportation Advisory Committee, a regional planning group.
"We've got to break a cycle of shortsightedness in governmen," he said. "Too many candidates are focused on the next election, and they're entirely caught up in satisfying whatever set of special interests got them elected. They're entirely focused on that two-year cycle."
Besse said that he wants to become lieutenant governor because the office can bring attention to important issues.
"The lieutenant governor is an individual actor, with one foot in the executive branch and one foot in the legislative branch, who can use their vision to identify problems and present solutions, and to educate the public and call other leaders to action," Besse said.
Last year, the Progressive Democrats of North Carolina had a convention in Winston-Sa--lem to talk about backing a candidate for lieutenant governor. The group's annual meeting, in Asheville this year, is a result of that convention.
"As we envision it, the Progressive Democrats will serve as the catalyst ... (for) up-front mo-ney and volunteers to sparkplug the campaign," the group wrote about the meeting on its Web site.
Schorr Johnson, a spokesman in Raleigh for the N.C. Dem-ocratic Party, said that "while the Progressive Democrats are not an official party organization, Democrats are the Big Tent party, and we welcome their views."
Party leaders are just trying to get through the Nov. 7 general election.
"Our entire focus is the next 33 days," Johnson said.
The Democratic primary for lieutenant governor will be in May 2008.
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