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When Ben’s team asked me to pen an endorsement statement, my first thought was no way. It goes without saying that I support him, and what could I say that you haven't already heard?
When they said it would be the final email of the campaign - Ben’s closing argument if you will - I said no way! Can't I just canvass or work the polls or something less…public?
The fact that you're reading this means I lost, lol.
So, dear friends, here goes….
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Ben launched his campaign last July, with a 15-county tour of Western North Carolina on his way to visiting all 100 counties. Since then, each phase of the campaign has had a distinct tone to it.
Phase 1: I’m Sorry; Who are you??
Ben checked into a hotel in Asheville for five days and drove all around the mountains, attending July 4th parades, farmers markets, and fireworks shows. He made great friends on the first leg of the journey, but there were many who asked him - point blank - why he was “running against Rachel.”
A full 8 months before the primary, many told him that Ms. Hunt was going to be the nominee, and they didn’t understand why he was running. Between us, there were some jeers and sneers, some social media trolling, and a whole lot of “who does he think he is.”
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Phase 2: Rural Counties Matter!
After a few weekends of back and forth to the west to cover a third of the state, and after his Comms Team started cataloging his 100-county tour on social media, a truly strange thing started happening. Rural counties in Eastern North Carolina started contacting him, complaining! They wanted to know why, if he was going to all 100 counties, he hadn't been to their counties yet!
We couldn’t believe it, y'all!
Always one with a strategy, Ben assured folks that he was simply covering the mountains before it got too cold and snowy. (Cold and snowy is not Ben's jam.)
That satisfied folks for the time, but he expedited his time in the mountains and started heading east. Gotta give the people what they want, lol!
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Phase 3: Ben Clark - Meet Kim Hardy!
Of course Ben and Dr. Hardy already knew each other. They are both Cumberland Democrats deeply invested in the success of the county and the Sandhills region. But Dr. Hardy launched her 30-county listening tour of Eastern North Carolina, just as Ben was rounding the turn out of Watagua and Wilkes and, well, this is the best way I can describe it: remember that 80s commercial where the guy and girl bump into each other and his chocolate bar falls into her jar of peanut butter and they realize they have just made magic?
Dr. Hardy invited all statewide candidates to attend different stops on her tour - and many did. But none more than Ben. Watching them together was simply magic. They truly wanted to know why rural, Black voters seemed to be giving up - so they showed up and they listened.
Before we knew it, Ben had ticked off the next 30 or so counties on his 100-county tour in no time and he seemed to genuinely be having fun doing it! Those were some of the best days of the campaign.
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Phase 4: The Middle Finger
The west was done, the east was done. Now, to visit the 30 or so counties in the middle of the state. There were no sneers, no jeers - only the coldest of cold shoulders I’ve ever seen in my life.
To give you some perspective, remember middle school? Now imagine trying to sit at the cool kids’ table in middle school when you hadn’t been invited. That’s what it was like campaigning in the Urban Centers.
My dear husband, as gentle a spirit as you’ll ever meet in your life, couldn’t get a return call or email, couldn’t get meet-n-greets scheduled, couldn’t even have 60 seconds to introduce himself after driving for hours.
The powers that be had no interest in an upstart campaign for Lt. Governor because in their minds, the nominee was already decided. They treated Ben worse than a chitlins salesman at a PETA conference.
Ben didn't let it get him down but, between us, that really hurt my feelings.
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Phase 5: The Closing Argument
With the 100 county tour complete in December, January brought a sense of uncertainty. Ben had spent 5 months on his tour. With 2 months to go until Election Day, it was strange not to know what every day would bring.
At that point Ben turned to making the case for being the most prepared, the most qualified, the most experienced candidate in the race.
He locked up endorsements from the OGs of the NC General Assembly who, to a person, said Ben was the most serious and effective candidate, who had delivered real results for NC.
He touted his record on HBCUs, expanding healthcare access, criminal justice reform, education and infrastructure budgets, the military, and redistricting.
He tweaked his bio to say, “I’m running on my OWN name and my OWN record,” and he likened the campaign to a job search, asking Democratic primary voters to compare resumes, and “hire” based on “leadership, not legacy.”
That irked some folks too, who accused him of everything from “self-congratulating" to "diminishing himself" and "devaluing his opponent" to "attacking other Dems.”
As with everything, Ben took it in stride, and pressed on to the eve of the election - and here we are.
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So Why Ben Clark?
So, why do I believe you should vote Ben Clark for Lt. Governor? Because the eight months were hard and some people weren’t nice to him? Of course not. If he couldn’t take the heat, he should have bowed out early like many folks told him to!
No, you should vote for Ben Clark because he is the complete opposite of EVERYTHING Mark Robinson stands for. Because he doesn’t disparage or vilify his opponents or critics, because he loves this state and everybody in it. Because he will never embarrass or shame us, but will represent us with the class and dignity that the position deserves.
You should vote for Ben Clark because he ran an AMAZING race that left no one, no county, no region, no demographic behind.
You should vote for Ben Clark, because he showed up! In every county, at 400 campaign stops, from Murphy to Manteo, in rural communities, with no minimum donation requirements. He simply showed up!
You should vote for Ben Clark because he’s never held a grudge in his life and, when he wins, will be the first to extend an olive branch, to build coalitions, and to put the state’s needs above his own ego.
You should vote for Ben Clark because, as I always say, to know Ben is to admire him. And after the past four years we’ve endured, don’t we deserve a Lt. Governor we can admire, this time?
You have my word that, if given the chance, Lt. Governor Ben Clark will make you so proud!
He’s not just my choice for Lt. Governor - he is my hero!
Early voting continues through Saturday. Election Day is March 5.
VOTE Ben Clark for Lt. Governor.
Love and blessings,
Dion
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ABOUT BEN CLARK - Ben Clark served five terms in the NC Senate, representing Cumberland and Hoke Counties. Ben was commissioned in the US Air Force in 1981 and served 20 years at duty stations around the world. Ben has spent the last 20 years at Ft. Liberty, where he was born, preparing the next generation of soldiers to protect and defend American democracy. Ben is a common sense Democrat running for Lt. Governor to protect our Human Rights, our Constitutional Rights, and our Civil Rights.
Use of Senator Clark’s military rank, job titles, and photographs in uniform does not imply endorsement by the Department of the Air Force or the Department of Defense. For more information about the Clark for Lt. Governor Campaign, visit www.BenClarkNC.com.
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