Dear Friends,
With the November 5, 2024 General Election winners and losers mostly called, New Rural Project’s (NRP) mission doesn’t start and end at the ballot box. We remain unwavering in our goal to be a visible, effective, and accessible resource within rural communities that feel overlooked and ignored by the political process. Through our work, we have seen real positive change happening on the ground. I could not be prouder of the work our tireless staff and volunteers accomplished throughout this election season to ensure that rural voters were educated about their choices and empowered to participate in the electoral process.
For the first time in our short 3-year history, NRP endorsed candidates in races that most aligned with our focus issues on education, public safety, healthcare, and voting rights. While the presidential election results are not what many of us hoped for, we are proud that all five candidates in state and local races where we invested most heavily were victorious
As we send this email out, Justice Allison Riggs has declared victory in her re-election to the NC Supreme Court as she leads her opponent by 625 votes. All three candidates we endorsed for Council of State won their races, including Governor-elect Josh Stein, Attorney General-elect Jeff Jackson, and Superintendent-elect Maurice “Mo” Green. We also supported Representative Garland Pierce (HD-48) for the second election cycle and helped break the Republican supermajority and maintain the only non-Republican seat between Charlotte and the coast.
In the election's final weeks, we endorsed two county commission candidates in Anson County and two in Scotland County. We were excited that Joshua Ellerbe won in Anson County, but unfortunately, the two strong candidates in Scotland County were not able to claim victory in their races. We are excited to continue our work alongside these candidates who won and those who didn’t to fight for a better rural North Carolina.
NRP’s work begins and ends with listening and throughout this election season, this is exactly where our work focused. From July to September, we touched over 100 women through our Beauty Salon Conversations in Hoke and Scotland counties. We canvassed over 36,000 doors and made over 21,000 calls, hearing the critical issues and concerns of our rural communities.
From the 22-year-old new mother who was inspired to vote after attending both counties’ Beauty Salon Conversations to the two 24-year-old Black men who canvassed with NRP and became first-time voters within one week of their employment, our work rallied participation from many skeptical young voters.
Though we know many people have felt discouraged about the outcome of the presidential election, NRP remains steadfast in our commitment to supporting those rural voices that feel unheard and unseen and we need you in this ongoing fight. As we see the current NC General Assembly members rush to enact laws before folks who helped break the Supermajority take office in 2025, we must take action together to ensure our voices are heard and our communities are protected.
Your continued support will help us all do our part to make sure our politicians know the power of rural North Carolina!
Warm regards,
Cynthia Wallace and the New Rural Project Team
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