Friday, September 7, 2012

Mike Stone violates election law!

Political signs are considered by many to be the necessary evil of election season.  Like nearly everything else related to elections, the placement and timing for sign displays are regulated by North Carolina law.  According to NC G.S. 136-32, political signs can be placed along the right of way no earlier than 30 days before the beginning of early voting.  In our case, that's September 18.  This fact isn't a mystery.  All you need to do is call your local board of elections, and a representative will be more than happy to tell you the date or email you the statute. 

Representative Mike Stone (R-NC House 51) knows all of this.  He just doesn't care.  Today is September 7, and I personally drove by about 20 of Stone's signs along the right-of-way on NC Hwy 24/27 in Harnett County.  Another Democratic volunteer reported to me that Stone also has signs along the right-of-way of Nicholson Rd., and in the whereabouts of Swanns Station in Lee County.  I took the pictures below this morning.  I said that Stone doesn't care; here's why: while the statute says that whoever erected the signs is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor, the only penalty is that the signs must be removed by the DOT.  And, actually proving that Stone personally erected the signs would be nearly impossible.


 
So, Mike Stone doesn't care about the law because he won't get caught breaking it.  For a guy so neatly tucked into AFP's pocket, all of the conservative lip-service to the rule of law sounds like so much hypocrisy.  Remember, too, that this is the candidate who claimed to have no knowledge of the false mailer that went out right before election day in 2010, the mailer which secured his election.  My guess on this is that Rep. Stone will be said to have had no knowledge of the fact that 20-30 of his signs, at least, went out a week early.  But, his name's on the signs. 

Bill Tatum has his work ahead of him in this election.  His opponent plays dirty.  If you want to support fair, transparent leadership in the General Assembly, volunteer or contribute, and by all means vote for Bill Tatum.


** UPDATE **
An attorney for the Harnett County Board of Elections has notified me that he will be contacting Rep. Stone with respect to these signs.  While it can't be proven that Stone placed or authorized the placing of these signs, it's still his name on the cardboard, and therefore his responsibility.  Kudos to the Harnett County BOE for working quickly.


4 comments:

  1. One thing for sure. Sheriff Carter won't be enforcing the sign law when it comes to Mike Stone in Lee County. The sheriff over there in Lee took a stoning and no longer things Stone is a crook.

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  2. It's not really the sheriff's deal, anyway.

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  3. Glad i found you, as one that needs to maintain an anonymous profile due to clearance/work enviroment i appreciate an opportunity to expound on issues dear to me without fear of an honest engagement of ideas from the blog owner because of their inability to support a position based on facts. although we likely agree on many issues we will surely spar as it is my desire to see positions supported by reason and thought. "A"

    p.s. As a fellow vet i thank you for your service and should the opportunity arise i look forward to meeting you one day.

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  4. do you think it's right to be on City Council buy properties for pennies on the dollar and knowing what the bids will be and then buy the propertie and then rent the property out for section 8 people at tax payers expense
    if you think this is right then vote for Mike stone like he says is written in stone but we all know this is nothing but from a crook I ask you to vote for a bill Tatum that will clean all this mess up this comes from a working man from Lee County that has work for a crook like Mike stone proof is in the pudding ask anybody in the working community of Jonesboro thank you working man

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