ROCKINGHAM — Sen. Tom McInnis was first in line to file for reelection Monday morning — which he noted was a first for him thanks to the absence of former Rep. Ken Goodman who beat him to the punch every election cycle.
McInnis, who is running for his fourth term representing Senate District 25, said he remains “cautiously optimistic” that voters have seen value in the legislation he’s been a part of in Raleigh in his time in office.
“While we have accomplished many great things, rural North Carolina still suffers from the Great Recession and the way we will be able to get rural North Carolina running at full speed will be the ability for our citizens to obtain proper training for the jobs of today,” said McInnis, a member of the Senate Standing Committee on Education and Higher Education where he has sponsored legislation that pushes for additional vocational training opportunities through dual enrollment and the community college system.
“We cannot stop now, we must move our state forward from the mountains to the sea,” he continued.
Right behind McInnis in line to file was Commissioner Ben Moss. Moss announced his intent to run for Goodman’s former seat representing District 66 in March at the Richmond County GOP’s annual convention. District 66 has been held by Democrats since at least 1988, according to records with the Richmond County Board of Elections.
Moss, who was first elected to the Board of Commissioners in 2010, said he’s had the idea of running for state office on his mind for about four or five years. If elected, Moss said he would bring a “common sense approach” to governing, and would follow Goodman’s example of working across the aisle to serve his constituents.
“With my experience working with local government budgets I think I will bring a lot to the table,” he said.
District 66 includes Montgomery County and part of Stanly County. Moss said that while he’s familiar with the issues these two counties face, being similar in population and makeup to Richmond County, his biggest challenge will be getting his name out in those counties.
“If you do the wishes of the people you represent the rest takes care of itself,” Moss said.
Rep. Scott Brewer, who was appointed to serve the remainder of Goodman’s District 66 seat, filed Monday afternoon. Brewer will face the winner of the primary in March 2020.
Linda Douglas also filed for reelection as the register of deeds.
There are three seats on both the Richmond County Board of Commissioners and Board of Education up for reelection. Of the commissioners, Chairman Kenneth Robinette, Vice Chairman John Garner and Jimmy Capps will defend their seats, and on the school board, Chairman Wiley Mabe, Jerry Ethridge and Ronald Tillman.
The filing period ends at noon on Friday, Dec. 20, 2019.
