![]() “Western North Carolina is the land of retail politics. Politics is still personal in the 11th and there is still a healthy suspicion of outsiders, particularly those perceived as using the people of the district to further their own political ends. Even social media and internet outreach is unreliable for candidates, as broadband connectivity can vary from difficult to impossible to find in some parts. ![]() Mass media in the region is unusually fragmented there is no print newspaper that reaches the entirety of the district and TV stations can come from Asheville, Atlanta, Chattanooga, or Greenville, South Carolina, depending on the part of the district. Traversing the district to meet voters in person can take as long as three hours, much of which is on two-lane mountain roads. The district’s sprawling size and geographic isolation also create unique challenges in reaching voters. The 11th is as much Brasstown and Brevard as it is Biltmore. The district’s character and politics are defined at least as much by the dozens of small towns, hundreds of hollows, and wide swaths of unincorporated land that dot the mountain sides as it is by Ashville’s drum circles and progressive politics. Boone and Watauga County beckon just beyond the northeastern boundary, while vast swaths of the Nantahala define the densely forested but sparsely populated counties in the west.Īsheville may feature prominently in profiles of the district, but the liberal city makes up just 12 percent of its population. Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee hem the triangular district on two sides, leaving only the eastern edge vulnerable to redistricting shifts. It has remained tucked in the western wedge of North Carolina for nearly 60 years. In a state where congressional district boundaries move more often than a Methodist minister, the 11th congressional district has been an exception. What used to be a laughable question is now being asked seriously: Will Cawthorn be a one-term congressman? The decision has led to a genuinely difficult primary for him on May 17, filled with credible candidates who could hold him under 30 percent and force a runoff. While none of his many controversies on their own have truly endangered his position, one decision this winter has been fundamentally different: an unprecedented decision to voluntarily change districts, before backtracking to run for his current seat. That’s what drove the conventional wisdom that Cawthorn was all but guaranteed a return to the halls of Congress. Politically, a trifecta of strengths overshadows those liabilities: voting patterns that are increasingly defined by partisanship over everything else, a Republican-friendly district, and the power of incumbency. Or, in his words, “ comms rather than legislation.” Together, they’re examples of a nascent career built around attention rather than public policy. Still more, like telling a disability rights activist to “ chill the fuck out,” suggest a striking lack of maturity. Others, like misleading people about military service and training for the Paralympics, reveal a tenuous relationship with the truth. Some, like credible allegations of serial sexual misconduct and multiple weapon violations, are potentially criminal. Congressman Madison Cawthorn ’s mistakes and liabilities run the gamut.
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