Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2018
The November election left Mecklenburg County Republicans wondering about their party's future in local politics. Mike Collins talks with GOP veterans, including two who experienced blue wave defeats.
Republicans were all but wiped off the political map in Charlotte-Mecklenburg in the November election. Voters ousted the three GOP county commissioners in districts that were considered safe seats. Only one Mecklenburg Republican was re-elected to the General Assembly, mirroring GOP legislative defeats in Wake County and other urban corners.
It may not have happened nationally, but there was a blue wave in Mecklenburg. It has almost wiped out local Republicans: https://t.co/4l8eGukRfF
— Steve Harrison (@Sharrison_WFAE) November 7, 2018
In the 9th Congressional District, many Republican precincts in central, south and southeast Charlotte that make up the GOP "wedge" of support went blue.
It's been nearly a decade since Charlotte last elected a Republican to citywide office, and even longer since a Republican held the mayor's office.
City Council member Tariq Bokhari, one of only two Republicans on the council, offered a post-election assessment for his party "that some may not want to hear."
I've been dropping deep into the midterm numbers, and am working on a blueprint for urban republican survival that I will offer for consideration in the coming weeks. We need to preserve our conservative principles, but consider new ways of applying them. https://t.co/j3fkXLcCjC
— Tariq Scott Bokhari (@FinTechInnov8r) November 14, 2018
Where does the local GOP go after last month's rout?
GUESTS
Tariq Scott Bokhari, Charlotte City Council, Republican - District 6 (@FinTechInnov8r)
Matthew Ridenhour, former Mecklenburg County Commission member, Republican - District 5 (@mridenhour)
Edwin Peacock, former Charlotte City Council member and Republican mayoral nominee (@EdwinPeacockIII)