Editorial: Needs of the state, not loyalty to Trump, should dominate N.C. primary campaigns

When North Carolina voters cast ballots in the 2022 Republican primary their votes will answer a very basic question. It won’t have anything to do with education, jobs and the economy, health care, infrastructure, the environment or quality of life.

At issue will be the status of the North Carolina Republican Party. Will it be controlled by and beholden to Donald Trump and his cult of personality or will North Carolina political leaders shape the party’s message and positions on matters of concern to the voters?

Head-to-head in a Budd-McCrory race, particularly if the central issue is loyalty to Trump, Budd stands to benefit when the bulk of voters will probably be drawn from the base that, for the last six years increasingly has come to a cult-like worship of the former president.

So, we can expect the greatest debate in the GOP Senate primary to be about loyalty to Trump. No doubt, that positioning will be reflected down the ballot in congressional and even state legislative Republican primaries.

“"What you can do is continue to focus on your issues and [decide] if it's worth reminding people how this candidate got elected, and what's coming,” he said. “Because our democracy is really at stake now.”

Regardless of political affiliation, voters need to hear about where candidates stand on issues critical to the state and the lives of people in North Carolina. That’s where the campaign debate should be focused and not on loyalty to a former president.