Candidate Biography (submitted by campaign):

I was born and raised in a family that believes strongly in core Democratic values, and we have always fought for them at the state and national level. I’m proud to carry on that tradition in the race for Lt. Governor.

My mom, Anne, has been president of the North Carolina Society of Health Care Attorneys, and she created and co-directed an Adolescent Pregnancy Project at UNC’s School of Government. My dad, Walter, was born and raised near Charlotte. He went from there to UNC-Chapel Hill, then taught constitutional law at Duke and served as a top official in the Clinton Administration.

My wife Jolynn, a graduate of Duke Law School, has served as a judicial staff attorney and is now working in the area of privacy law. She grew up in Western North Carolina and was crowned Miss Asheville in 1987. We have two wonderful children, Jackson and Austen Grace.

I went from North Carolina’s public schools to a public university and then to Yale Law School, and I’ve been actively supporting Democratic candidates and Democratic values the whole time, while building the experience necessary to serve as Lt. Governor.

As Chief Legal Counsel to the Governor and as a Deputy Attorney General, I promoted public safety, public health and public integrity. I learned firsthand the crises that can confront state leaders, and as a result I am prepared to lead this state through any challenge.

I have served in government, but I’ve also stood up to it. I challenged governmental decisions that wasted taxpayers’ money or imperiled the clean air, safe water, and scenic beauty that are every North Carolinian’s birthright.

Now I’m running for Lieutenant Governor because for all the remarkable advances North Carolina has made over the past forty years – my lifetime – there is so much more we need to do.

I’m running for Lt. Governor because North Carolina needs statewide leaders who have the experience and ability to put core Democratic Party principles into practice. Building on the experience described above, I am now running the most substantive, issues-oriented campaign in this race.

I set forth proposals to help N.C. seniors that the Wilmington Star News called “attractive,” “sensible,” and “admirably specific.” My detailed education plan is designed to make sure that North Carolina is a top state not just for business, but for students and teachers as well. And I’ve clashed with my leading opponent on affirmative action and women’s constitutional right to choose, both of which I support and he does not. I also spoke out against the coal-fired power plant proposal at Cliffside, which he supports, because I believe there is no good reason to build such a plant now, and plenty of good reasons not to.

I also believe that—now more than ever—North Carolina needs state-level officials who make transparent, effective government a top priority, and who can make open government complementary with economic development. My government reform plan will ensure that our state government makes North Carolina businesses successful, and more importantly that it makes North Carolina citizens proud, by returning government to its core competencies and by limiting improper influence over the legislative process. As Lt. Governor, I will work to ensure that state government commits itself—fairly and effectively—to the things that matter most.

For details of these and other plans, plus the text of a children’s story I wrote, please visit my webpage at http://www.hd08.com/. With endorsements from the AFL-CIO, NARAL, Dr. John Hope Franklin, and support from Al Gore and many others, our campaign is gaining momentum every day. Thank you for your interest in joining it!